#when will the people who claim to love her stop speaking complete and utter shit? | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

whiteqnn · 4 years ago

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PURE [2] - Corpse Husband x Fem! Reader

Pairing: Corpse Husband x Fem!Reader

A/N: 443 notes?! THIS IS INSANE! Thank you guys so much for all the love under the first part of this, I was so shocked to see how many people enjoyed this story! I hope this one will be just as fun for you as the first one ^^

part 1

part 3

part 4

part 5

PURE [2]

Corpse stared at the red screen with the word IMPOSTOR written in the middle, his eyes widened, a small smile tugging at his lips.

“No way” he murmured into his microphone, no longer holding himself from breaking into laughter. “Do you guys see this? I wish I could see Y/N’s reaction.”

It took his audience just a second to respond, his chat being flooded with lots of comments about the said girl.

“SHES SHOOK” he managed to read one from the hundreds of comments, once again bursting into laughter. “Yeah, I can imagine.”

He decided to follow Lily for a while to make himself less suspicious. He probably didn’t need to do that this time, since the others usually suspected him when he was innocent. Ironically, each time he was the impostor, they seemed completely blind to every murder he committed.

They were both doing their tasks in O2 when the first body was reported.

“Woah, Y/N is fast” he mumbled, before unmuting himself.

“Okay,” Lily began speaking first “Corpse is 100% innocent, we were together this whole round, doing our tasks in O2. That’s all I have.”

“Yeah I saw you guys in there,” Felix said. “Where’s the body Sykkuno?”

“Um, so first of all I can also vouch for Dave and Y/N, we were hanging out all this time. So in the beginning, we were all in the upper engine, protecting each other like good friends that we are, and then we headed towards the medbay. And that’s where it gets interesting because I’m pretty sure I saw Poki leave medbay and run to the cafeteria.”

“You really think I would kill my best friend in the first round?”

“Yeah well, some people do” Sean scoffed, clearly referring to the last game when he was murdered by Felix. “Besides, I saw you guys when I was leaving Security so it looks like you were with her the entire round.”

“Wha- Okay, let me defend myself. I would never kill her if I was the impostor, which I’m not because she’d literally come barging into my room to murder me. She’d kill me for killing her first.”

Toast, who seemingly still held grudge against Corpse’s fellow impostor, decided to call Y/N out “Y’know, we all played with Rae before, so we all know how furious she gets after being killed first... but there’s one person who doesn’t know that.”

“Y/N/N?” Sean’s voice blared through their headphones “As much as I know how hard it would be for her to make the first kill, I can actually see that happening.”

“What?! Sykkuno vouched for me literally seconds ago, where the heck did you get that from Toast?” she asked in utter shock. Corpse glanced at his chat and leaned towards his mic, making sure that he was muted in the game.

“Y’know guys, if I didn’t know she’s the impostor, I’d believe in her every word. I mean, she’s so innocent, just listen to her.” he said with a smile, not expecting in the slightest how his audience will react.

“Aww, he goes soft for her ^^”

“The duo we need but don’t deserve”

“Y/N FOR THE BRIDE”

“What?” he almost stuttered, quickly going through the growing number of such comments. “I mean-”

“Ooh, someone’s getting angry. Where the heck? That’s aggressive, Y/N” Felix’s amused voice brought him back to reality, and even though Corpse didn’t use a webcam, he still tried to hide his pink-tinted cheeks in the material of his hoodie.

“It was not me! I swear! I was doing my tasks all this time, making sure that no one murders Sykkuno or Dave!”

“You’re pretty defensive for someone who claims to be innocent,” Toast said with a smirk hiding in his voice.

“Give her a break guys, she was literally with us all this time. I’m sure we would’ve noticed if she killed somebody” Dave stood up for her, but it seemed like all the attention was directed from Poki to Y/N.

“Well maybe the other impostor is either you or Sykkuno and you’re just trying to clear each other?”

“Um, if there were two impostors among the three of us, the third person would have to be a crewmate. I mean, it would be impossible for them to kill somebody without a crewmate seeing it.” Sykkuno pointed out, much to Corpses’ relief.

“I knew Sykkuno would vouch for her” he told his chat, before unmuting himself to defend Y/N as well “Haven’t we already established that Poki is sus as well? She was last seen near the body and has no alibi.”

“I didn’t do it. The only person that could vouch for me is dead, we were with each other the entire round. I leave her for a few seconds and somebody kills her, but it wasn’t me.”

“I don’t think she’s lying guys, I mean, if she killed Rae she’d probably be dead already” Felix chuckled “Let’s just skip this round, we don’t have enough evidence.”

“Alright, but Y/N,” Toast said, as everyone pressed the skip button “I have my eyes on you.”

Corpse could hear her sigh before everyone muted their mics.

“We’ve gotta get rid of Toast guys, he’s too suspicious. I don’t want him accusing my partner in crime, even though he’s right” he chuckled under his breath, following Toast’s character into Admin. “Alright, Felix is with us as well, good. If I just pretend I’m doing card swipe, they’re gonna both vouch for me since everyone knows I’m great at this task.” he shook his head with a deep laugh escaping his throat.

He could see the other two astronauts running around admin, before they both decided to leave, which gave Corpse a perfect opportunity to frame Toast. He killed the lights and chased his victim who, much to his joy, was now completely alone in comms.

“Hi, Felix. Bye, Felix.” Corpse snapped his neck before speeding out of the room and venting into Navigation.

That’s when someone fixed the lights. And Corpse jumped out of the vent, only to come face to face with none other than Toast.

“SHIT” he laughed in panic, seeing that he couldn’t use the kill function yet. “Shit, he must’ve seen me.”

And indeed, it took Toast just a split of second to run out of the room and speed towards the emergency button, Corpse hot on his tail, even though he knew he wouldn’t avoid getting ejected.

“I’m busted guys, there’s no way they’re gonna believe me” he told his audience, watching as Toast’s character approached the button. However, Corpse wasn’t sure if he was just seeing things, but he thought that he saw an outline of another character appear out of nowhere just mere seconds before Toast called the meeting...

“YES” he almost screamed, at the same time laughing hysterically, when he saw the red cross decorating Toast’s name.

“WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?!” Sean yelled, similarly to every other player that remained alive. “HOW DID THAT HAPPENED?!”

“Oh my God.”

“But- I don’t get it. What just happened?” Y/N’s soft voice sounded out, making Corpse laugh even more.

“Someone killed Toast the moment he called the meeting.” Sykkuno explained, barely holding himself from laughing.

“Is that even possible?” she asked confused, her voice sounding so innocent and sweet that the other impostor couldn’t stop himself from grinning.

“Oh my god, she’s just- I can’t.” he chuckled deeply “She’s too precious guys, I swear I’m gonna do everything to keep her alive.”

“Yeah, that’s some big brain move. And since Toast is dead, there’s only one person with balls who could do it” Sean said, clearly very sure of his next words.

“CORPSE!” Lily chirped into her microphone, her voice soon being followed by others who eagerly agreed with her.

“Okay, I admit I saw them in admin where I was doing the card swipe, but then they both left and I haven’t seen them anymore.”

“Were you in admin this whole time?” Poki asked.

“Um- yeah, pretty much. I tried to beat my own record in failing a card swipe.” he replied, making everyone laugh. He thought of it as a good cover, unless someone entered the admin after he left...

“Sykkuno where are you?” Poki directed her next question to the lime astronaut.

“Why am I accused again?” he asked confused “I was with Sean in medbay, I think Y/N joined us for a moment to do the scan, then she left, and then Toast called the meeting.”

“So maybe it’s her?” Dave commented “I mean, medbay is right next to the cafeteria, so she had quite an easy access to the emergency button.”

“Yeah, that would actually make sense” Lily added.

“Oh no, they’re gonna vote her off...” Corpse mumbled under his breath, deciding that he had to intervene. She just saved his ass, he couldn’t possibly just watch her get ejected because of that.

“Guys, I didn’t even know it was possible to kill someone this way. Trust me, I played only a few times and Jack made sure not to reveal any of his big brain moves.” she scoffed at the last part, making Jack let out a loud laugh.

“How can we be sure you’re not just acting all innocent? I mean, you exposed Felix last game, being one of the last people to stay alive.”

“Y/N was with me when Toast called the meeting, she is innocent” Corpse decided to finally speak up. The silence settled among other players. “She found me in admin and made sure nobody killed me when I failed the fucking card swipe.”

“Why are you saying this just now, Corpse?”

“Cause he’s fallen for her god damn trap! I told you!” Sean argued.

“What trap?” Y/N asked confused.

“I mean, who wouldn’t? It’s like listening to an angel” Corpse said, before he could stop himself. Everyone on the call went wild, just like his chat did... He didn’t know why he said that, it just slipped before he really thought about it.

“Corpse, you do realize you’re simping only makes you even more suspicious?” Poki asked with a laugh, and Corpse felt the blush rising up his cheeks. Even more, when Y/N completely ignored this comment, deciding to suddenly stay quiet...

Did he make her uncomfortable with such comments?

“Seriously though, I’m pretty sure it wasn’t her. We watched each other’s back, so I’m also clean.”

“As much as I hate to do it, I have to agree with Corpse on this one” Sean suddenly said. “That she’s innocent, I mean. I’m sure Corpse just follows her around like a lost puppy and I didn’t see the two of them, but I doubt Y/N knew it’s possible to kill somebody like that. No offense kiddo.”

“See? Guys, it wasn’t me!” she exclaimed.

“Wait, why do you hate to agree with me?” Corpse asked in confusion.

“CAUSE YOU’RE KINDA SUS CORPSE”

“What? I just told you my alibi, weren’t you listening Jack?”

“We have twenty seconds left” Lily reminded, cause everyone seemed to forget about the voting time. “We don’t skip at 7, right?”

“Alright, I’m voting Corpse, I still think he’s sus even though I agreed with him.” Sean announced, much to Y/N’s dismay. She quickly objected, trying to defend her fellow impostor:

“It’s NOT him, I watched him fail that dang card swipe!”

“DANG?! NO NEED TO BE SO OFFENSIVE YOUNG LADY”

“I’m also voting Corpse, he must be one of them.” Lily agreed with Jack.

“Sykkuno, I hope you’re not doing what I think you’re doing” Y/N asked the lime astronaut, who was silent for the past few minutes.

“I um- I don’t know, they kinda have a point Y/N...”

“Sykkuno, listen to me.” she lowered her voice, trying to convince him “Corpse is not the impostor. You know you can trust me, right?”

“...”

“SYKKUNO GOD DAMN IT, DON’T LISTEN TO HER!”

“Sorry guys...”

Corpse burst out laughing, seeing that out of seven remaining players, five of them decided to skip.

“She’s too good” he chuckled, quickly running up Y/N’s character when they started the next round. He circled her white astronaut, and she seemed to get his message because she eagerly followed him into Electrical to fake the tasks and wait for someone to show up.

Soon enough two figures waltzed into the room, only to be simultaneously decapitated by the two impostors, who then swiftly vented into medbay and locked the door to their crime scene.

“That was smooth” Corpse smiled, happily running around Y/N’s character. “I love being impostors with Y/N, it’s so much fun. The best thing is that no one besides Toast really suspects her of doing something wrong.”

Corpse figured Y/N sabotaged the oxygen because the next thing he saw was Lily running past medbay to stop it from depleting.

“Ladies first, Y/N” he mumbled, and even though she couldn’t hear him, her small character sped up and left the medbay, chasing after Lily. He waited a few seconds, before bursting out laughing.

Victory.

“WHAT THE FUCK?!” Sean yelled in shock “Y/N?! EXPLAIN YOURSELF RIGHT NOW”

“Y/N HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME?!”

“That was... I would never guess it was you!”

“I’m sorry guys, I really didn’t want to kill any of you” she laughed apologetically, but Corpse could sense she was smiling “I just had no other choice...”

“Yeah, I’m sure you killed us by accident” Toast’s voice blared out, followed by loud laughter.

“What was that again? I didn’t even know you could kill someone this way?” Felix mocked in a high pitched voice, making them laugh hysterically. Corpse also found himself unable to catch a breath between his giggles.

“I told you guys they’d fuck us up.” Rae spoke up “But I was actually glad Y/N killed me first, watching her kill Toast was so much fun.”

“Ha ha, thanks, Rae!” Toast exclaimed ironically.

“Y/N and Corpse are just complete serial killers, I don’t know how else to comment that” Felix chuckled.

“Well...” Corpse mumbled, unmuting his microphone “I can’t disagree. She’s a perfect partner in crime.”

“NOT AGAIN WITH SIMPING CORPSE” he heard Sean’s response, and once again felt awkward when his all his friends laughed at him, and Y/N remained quiet.

That was, however, until her soft voice effectively quietened everyone.

“It was.. an honor to murder my friends with you.”

Corpse never thought his face could hurt from smiling so much...

“Alright, who’s up for another game?” Felix asked after a few moments, and received a chorus of me’s from almost everyone.

“Unfortunately I have to go now, but it was so fun playing with you guys!” Y/N said, making everyone (Corpse included) object rather loudly:

“One more round, please? I want to see you kill someone again!”

“C’mon kid, what else do you have to do?”

“Stay with us Y/N, I need someone to protect me!”

“I’m sorry but I’m really tired. I’m sure I’d just fall asleep on my desk and Toast would come up behind my back to murder me.”

“Well, that was actually my plan...” the man in question replied with a chuckle.

“You sure you don’t wanna stay?” Corpse finally asked “Killing won’t be the same without you...”

“I know, and I’m sorry... But I was working the whole day and my eyes just hurt and I feel like I’m gonna faint” she replied.

“Alright, but just so you know, we’re playing again later this week, and I better see you entering the lobby on time” Felix said, trying to sound threatening, but failing at it. Y/N giggled to herself, the sound making Corpse smile almost unknowingly.

“I wouldn’t dare to miss a chance to murder my new friends!”

“Oh my god, she’s too adorable!”

Everyone said their goodbyes and soon Y/N left the call, her small astronaut disappearing from the lobby, much to Corpse’s disappointment. He wished she’d stay a little longer, playing with her was something he found incredibly fun and quite relaxing if he was completely honest. Or maybe aside from playing itself, listening to her voice was what kept bringing a smile to his face every time she spoke up.

“Guys, I think I’m also gonna call it a day, it was really fun.”

“What? It’s not even been over an hour!” Rae protested.

“Yeah, I um.. I know but-”

“Don’t push him guys, he can’t play without his partner in crime” Toast’s teasing voice made everyone burst out laughing, and Corpse just shook his head, glad that nobody could see how red his face became.

“Fuck you guys, okay?” he chuckled into the mic, before finally saying his goodbyes and leaving as well. He thanked his viewers for watching and promised to stay longer next time, before closing the discord.

He sat for a moment in his chair, staring at the black screen, a smile slowly widening on his lips. It was one of the best games he had ever played in Among Us, and he couldn’t wait to be Impostor with Y/N again.

“Perfect partner in crime... I’m such an idiot” he mumbled under his breath and felt himself blush, shaking his head at how awkward that must’ve sounded. He pulled his phone out and checked his Twitter, only for his eyes to widen once he saw the top trending hashtags.

#Y/NxCorpse

#Y/NfortheBride

#PerfectPartnerInCrime

“Oh my God...” Corpse yelped, covering his eyes with his hand as if it would make all those tweets disappear. “Why am I the way I am?”

He considered texting her, trying to maybe make things less awkward than they already were, but decided against it. He feared he’d make even more of an idiot out of himself...

Convinced that all those comments about simping and now those hashtags made her uncomfortable, it didn’t even cross his mind that Y/N might be looking at them at the exact same moment, with adorable blush tinting her cheeks, and her lips turning into a small, shy smile...

A/N: I think about writing 3rd part...

#corpse husband #corpse x reader #fanfiction #corpse husband x reader #corpse husband imagine #youtubers x reader #corpse husband imagines

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beann-e · 4 years ago

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I have a head cannon that bakugou would not be sweet to who he liked or dated and instead deny it and hate on them even more.

The reason being because he doesn’t really understand feelings so, when he’s talking badly about you he just assumes it’s normal and a bit funny at the lies he’s spitting that his just continuously friends are eating up.

he’s been talking bad about people for years so , who cares if your his s/o your no acceptation all people are equal in his mind. Now lemme explain please fall in line and hold a buddys hand kids we’re going on a trip inside my brain

It wasn’t easy getting the spiky haired male to ask you out honestly if someone asked you , which they’d never dare since they’d never know per bakugous request him saying it’s not their business , how you two got together you would shrug your shoulders and walk off.

It wasn’t that it was a boring day or a simple question that you supplied the answer for. It was that it was unusual.

You’d been at quirk practice after school in the gym like you’d usually do only this time bakugou made his way over to you.

You’d been seeing him more often when you were in the gym and you weren’t sure why until he explained that he was interested in your workout routine saying you two could have a contest to see who’s was more grueling

It seemed like fun so like any competitive person you agreed. Only for him to tap out on day two your laughs swirling around the gym as he fought so hard to say he only lost because he just didn’t like how the air would hit his ass crack anytime he did your little girly squats you’d wrote down for him.

You couldn’t say you weren’t both confused and happy when he let the air calm down before he spoke “ i’m kind of conflicted “ his eyes coming up to look at yours from the floor “ could you maybe help me“

“ of course what’s up “

“ i’m at a standstill “

“ more like a sit still “ you joked eyes peering down at his straight face “ yeah ok let’s imagine that didn’t happen —continue “

“ uh yeah anyways — i’m at a standstill because honestly I like your shit workout “ he shook his head to the floor “ but I also like you so I find myself thinking if I couldn’t get through your workout even though I enjoyed it so much could I “

his voice rasped shakily “ could I get through a relationship with you even though I like you even more “

truthfully you’d wish you’d said no because right now you wanted nothing more than to just be friends with the male sitting across the room from you.

It’s not that you didn’t like him of course you did he was hot , smart, and felt strongly about his goals but, he was an asshole.

Not in the aspect of hes just mean and rude but he was an all around prick as he laughed with his friends from across the room.

Their voices only getting louder as you sat alone a few seats away from them trying to complete some work on your desk you’d just been given “ dude gotta admit class 1-A’s got some hot chicks “

“ yeah honestly minas top three if we’re being truthful “

“mina dude come on have you seen jirou “

“ don’t even get me started “ denkis voice came out in a soft groan “ god I would— “

“ yeah yeah all that jazz but “ seros voice came out soft. His hand coming up to point at the seat as you sat in with your head down eyes furrowed in anger at the math on your paper that wasn’t syncing up with your brain right now

“ y/n “ his fist tightened as he groaned “ y/n could get it on all accounts — the car “

“ you don’t have a car “ denkis voice came out as sero continued

“ the school bathroom “

“ but which one ? because one of you would have to go in the wrong sex’s unless its a handicap or family stal-“

“the fucking dorms “

“ y/n ? “ kirishima asked quickly “ y/n l/n ? “

“ fuck yeah “

“ hmm “ kirishima studied you before shaking his head “ honestly kinda hot never really paid attention to that stuff before though “

“ what the fuck how can’t you “

“ uh i’m more so a personality guy “

“ so by personality would you fuck em ‘ “

“ not to be vulgar but of course “ his answer taking no time “ y’know how fun they’d be in a relationship though not just with sex ? imagine cuddles—fuck —what about cuddle monster y/n maybe ? god that’d be so hot “

denki getting restless as he held his thoughts in from the other males. His mind spazzing before finally getting to speak “ i’d fuck her too “ he yelled everyone’s eyes going sharp on the boy before he coughed “ id rock it too — we’re talking about getting mullets “

“ oh boys that’d be kinda hot “ you said laughing sarcastically sero turning to you smiling softly “ oh yeah on who in particular “

“ mm totally blondie over there “

“ the fuck ? “ his eyes shot away from denkis and moved to yours anger pouring through his gaze making you jerk back a little in surprise “ the hell you mean i’d look hot “

your eyebrows creased “ well because I — you do you would “

“ don’t go talking out of your ass you hear me—shit people like you don’t deserve to talk to anyone about looks “ your mouth went dry at his lazer stare.

His lips curling up into a smirk before he shook his head “ these assholes are talking about fucking you yknow “ he whispered to you “ you gonna let em ? you gonna let em right? because that’s the only attention you’d ever get right “

“ bakubro hold up chill out “

“ yeah bakubro chill out “ you said your gaze wavering from the hard one you’d had when you felt the heat radiating off of him no comfort coming from him to you only confusing you more. Had you two been in a secret argument that you knew nothing about

“ whatever “ he leaned back in his chair as the class went back to what they were doing your hands gripping the pencil when the class got even louder but you only searching for your boyfriends voice easily drowning out the others

“ i’d never fuck “ your heart broke at the deep voice youd identified

“ dude seriously come on with the lies —fucking beautiful “

“ correctomundo my friend their absolutely stunning “

his laugh ripping through their claims hand jerking back to point at you “ you think their beautiful much less hot ? “

“ yeah you don’t ? “ denki spat all of them looking at the boy like he was crazy for enjoying this obviously racy topic right now much less taking the wrong side of the debate

“ I literally just sat here and said I wouldn’t fuck em’ pokémon —so you can guess what that correlates to “

“ hey dude why’re you being sucha a dick —the personality’s top tier even if your stupid enough to think their not at least hot“ kirishima putting the ending words in quotation marks honestly a bit upset with his friend

“ hey watch it your over here defending an extra like your gonna make moves on em “ he laughed “ I advise otherwise “

you let out a sigh thinking he’d finally stopped acting the way he was. Your mind preparing to only give him the silent treatment for today and then tomorrow peppering him with kisses until he laughed and apologized for his words

Heart only being snatched away from your body when you heard his deep vibrating voice cut through the room “ probably gonna give you a rash from all the shit that’s on their mouth all the time “

it’s just lipgloss.

Lipgloss bakugou bought you packs of earlier this week after he swore he loved the taste and scent.

moving to wipe at it gently with the sleeve of your outfit him still going causing tears to start building up in your eyes “ bet the bitch doesn’t even shower —had em’ over for a project last night had to wash my sheets and blanket —took hours last night “

“ oh “ denki let out “ I was a bit confused when I saw you at the laundry room at 3 in the morning.

Tears blurring your vision as you thought about his earlier words when he’d given you your favorite sweater of his after saying he’d washed it for you because he knew you wouldn’t do it yourself because in his words ‘ you would never wash it without his help because you were a creep and didn’t want to erase his smell or some shit ‘

“ yeah —smelled so bad im telling you stay away you don’t wanna ask em’ out “

you moved to grab your phone as he kept talking you typing out a message as best as you could before hitting send. His hand moving off the desk and going in his pants pocket to pull his phone out keeping it hidden under the table eyes trailing over the screen

Firefighter >3

baby are we arguing

if your mad at me please just tell me don’t just talk shit about me in front of your friends

him locking his phone and placing it on his desk before you typed out one more message him letting out a sigh as he grabbed for it again

firefighter >3

if you keep going we’re over

“ but imagine whoever bags them apart from bakugou at least since we all know he’s all anti hot y/n “

“ they’d be so lucky “

“ yeah right “ he spoke lowly almost trying to hide his voice from you eyes glued to his phone “ wouldn’t dare “

“ wouldnt dare what bakugou “

“ oh wouldnt dare be —-be lucky “ he locked his phone again “ feel bad for the person dating them all the shit they gotta go through put up with , claims they make through message and not with real words, being too much of a pussy to speak up for themselves“

he shook his head softly eyes twitching “ you wouldn’t put up with that —you couldn’t put up with that your not built for it you gotta have tough skin y’know like me “

he licked his lips moving to sit up straighter when hearing his phone vibrate “ don’t uh “

firefighter >3

one more bakugou

one more bakugou katsuki and were over

his eyes darting over to yours before his eyebrows furrowed and body shook in anxiousness he couldn’t figure out what to do.

He was an asshole you knew this so why the fuck were you being such a crybaby now? did he pick the wrong person to date he thought you were strong

He genuinely just wanted to keep these creeps away from what’s his by scaring them off he wasn’t doing anything wrong? well at least in his eyes

He moved to talk again trying his best to string together a nice sentence “ just don’t uh ask —ask em’ out —-their utter dog shit when it comes to relationships leave it to someone who can handle that y’know “

he relaxed into his chair at his victory when he watched you throw your phone to the table and fix your skirt and standup. Him sighing out when you picked up your stuff to leave “ thank all might “ he whispered head shooting to lean back against his desk chair and look up at the sky blood running cold when his phone vibrated against the table

firefighter >3

all your shits gonna be outside my dorm door. So you might want to come collect it before I have half and half lighting campfires tonight

y’know since i’m such a shit person —gotta hope your bestie deku can give me some after school lessons on personalities. He’s so sweet I bet he’ll fix me right up

screw you katsuki see you in hell

“ the —the fuck what did —the hell did I do wrong “ he screamed when he saw you slam the classroom door after flicking him off

his friends eyes moving from the door to bakugous phone that he’d thrown on the table.

Todorokis eyes going wide when he read his stupid nickname given to him by the steamy male “ I —I uh“ he coughed “ I think i’m gonna go help y/n since their now single—don’t want em’ getting hurt with amateur fire starters again when i’m right here “

his stone face peered down at the red faced boy “ I mean that is ok with you bakugou seeing as though you two were most likely in a relationship by the messages before today “

“ you asshole did you go through me and my s/o’s messages “

“ judging by the series of recent text I don’t believe that’s the case for you two anymore “ he reached to grab his backpack saying a formal goodbye before he spoke “ I feel like i’m needed by a very —very perfectly intelligent unshitty person right now “

seros voice coming out softly as he let bakugous phone fall to the table disappointment in his eyes “ look uh —dude you didn’t have to mess your relationship up just to go against us ? “ he winced at the claim“ honestly you could’ve stayed quiet the whole time —it’s not like we agreed with you anyways “

bakugou leaned back in his chair anger swirling in his stomach as he felt his body sweat at the new heat spreading throughout his whole body.

How the hell did he mess up where the hell did he mess up he explained to you he wasn’t gonna treat you any differently than any other extra here and that went for basic conversations too

Maybe he went a bit far with the dont date em ‘ that was probably it you didn’t like how he said don’t date you because he was the only one who could handle you right ?

He shook his head a bit confused you just wanted him to say that you could handle yourself and didn’t need him right ?

So , why the hell did he feel like he’d done something wrong he wasn’t stupid but he just wasn’t well versed in feelings. He already didn’t know how to handle his own so how was he expected to handle another persons.

To him his words were normal he talked about all people like this hell, he bullied deku for 3 years going as far as to make a special nickname for him

that wasn’t even the worse he could’ve done and you knew that so why was he in trouble and worrying about Icy hot taking his place

He was honestly confused?

Could words really be that hurtful?

could his words really be that hurtful ?

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restlessfandoming · 4 years ago

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"you, my enemy" (chilumi oneshot)

Lumine must assassinate the cruel king of Snezhnaya, Ajax.

i could see this being turned into a full fledged fic? but for now, here is the dollar store version LOL

[Masterlist] [AO3 Link]

"you, my enemy"

“I want you to kill the king of Snezhnaya.”

Lumine’s eyes flickered to her client. “King Ajax?”

“There is only one, is there not?” the hooded man responded.

She narrowed her eyes at him. “You must have the wrong person,” she said. “I do run-of-the-mill jobs. I don’t murder kings.”

“I was told you were the only mercenary who could do it.”

Lumine slid out of the bar booth. “Find someone else who is insane enough to do that. I value my life.”

The man’s arm shot out, grabbing Lumine by the wrist. She would have sliced it clean off, had the man not taken off his hood.

He had an unmistakable hue of scarlet red hair, with equally fiery eyes to match.

“You’re Diluc,” Lumine said. “The son of the slain King Ragvindr.” It’s never a good idea to get involved with royals.

His face wavered at the mention of his father. “And who was the one who murdered him?”

“King Ajax,” she answered. “That sounds like your own quest for vengeance. Not mine.”

Diluc pulled her closer. “Magic,” he whispered.

Lumine’s blood ran cold. “Magic?” she echoed hollowly.

“I’ve been trying to find the right person to do this for a long time,” he told her. “I had to do my research.”

“What does magic have to do with this?” Lumine asked, trying to keep her voice even.

“You use magic,” Diluc stated. “That’s how you’ve completed every single one of your assignments perfectly.”

Magic had been banished long ago, a witch hunt massacring any and all magic users within the land of Teyvat. Each of the seven kingdoms had decreed it, agreeing that those with magic were too powerful—a threat to the people, all people.

Ever since, the rare few born with magical powers were forced to hide away their abilities for survival. I thought Aether and I hid it well enough.

“You do this, I won’t report you to the authorities,” Diluc continued.

“What about you?” Lumine hissed. “You’re supposed to be dead with the rest of your family.” She shook off his grip. “If I report you to King Ajax, there’s no doubt I’d get a hefty reward, more than you could ever give me for murdering him.”

He pursed his lips into a thin line. “If there’s any suspicion of a magic user, what sort of action do the authorities take?”

You’re killed on the spot—no questions asked. The kingdoms didn’t want to run any risk of magic users rising up, no matter how small of a threat.

“We would be executed at the same time,” Diluc said lowly.

Shit.

Lumine sat back down in the booth, sinking into the seat, gnawing on the side of her cheek. Then, she took a deep breath in.

“You’ll give me every single piece of Mora you have,” she demanded.

Diluc’s face visibly relaxed. “Of course.” He crossed his arms. “The hidden vaults of my family are all yours: every single jewel, Mora, artifact—when you complete the job.”

Lumine’s mouth nearly watered at the prospect of all the riches.

No, she wasn’t greedy. That amount of Mora meant she and her twin brother Aether could retire from this life, this life of scraping by with the money they made from bloody bounties and assassinations. It was the only job they could do, being abandoned as children, having to learn to fend for themselves.

This one job meant she and Aether could have quiet peace until the end of their days.

She held out her hand to Diluc.

“You have a deal.”

* * *

When Lumine arrives in Snezhnaya, she expects impoverished villages, famished citizens, and cold, desecrated lands—all while this merciless, vile king sat on his throne of bones and riches.

However, what she finds are bustling streets of business and cheerful citizens. Children played freely on the streets. The kingdom was thriving.

Is this king truly as evil as the stories say?

It hadn’t been long since King Ajax had begun his crusade of conquering the entirety of Teyvat. It had started with his brutal assassination of his own ruler at the time, the slaying of the late Tsaritsa, quickly followed by his claim to the throne. Then, he had taken over the small country of Mondstadt, and Liyue fell shortly after.

Any who opposed him would face the sharp end of a blade. The stories of him on the battlefield were whispers of blood soaked garments and a wicked smile as he slaughtered soldier after soldier with no remorse.

The image of this bloodthirsty monster faded as Lumine watched these citizens move around care free, as if they were unaware of the atrocities laying under their feet committed by their dear King Ajax.

Glancing up, she could see the distant looming monument, the grandiose castle of the king, looking over the land with a watchful stone eye.

She listened intently to the conversations around her, seeking any information about this Ajax, about how to get close enough to do her job.

She always wanted the most covert way, and now even more so. This was very much her highest profile case, and if she wasn’t careful, she could potentially start wars, with her murder being the first blood.

Perhaps the best way was to become some nondescript maid, someone’s whose presence and subsequent disappearance wouldn’t be questioned by any of the king’s allies. Perhaps as a chef? She could easily poison his food and silently slip away.

How she wished Aether was here with her. He was much more a strategist than she. Unfortunately, he had taken on a different job, far away in Inazuma. They would not see each other until both of their assignments were completed.

Lumine sighed, moving down the street, in search of a bar. Drunk bastards were always the best source of information: they didn’t know how to shut their mouths. In a bar, there were no figures too suspicious, and if there were, they would quickly be forgotten within a few pints of ale.

She pushed past vendors, until she was stopped by a brunette woman in a lavender robe.

“You are not from here,” she said with a breathy smile.

Singled out already? “I’ve only just recently moved here,” Lumine lied.

“Oh? For what reasons?” the woman pressed, her long eyelashes batting as she assessed Lumine head to toe. “Work?”

“No.” What was this woman’s motive? “I’ve heard Snezhnaya is a great country to live in.”

A content, pitched sigh. “Well, since you’ve just moved here, why don’t you come work for me? Outsiders earn a pretty penny.”

Lumine stared at her. “Who are you?”

The woman smiled. “I am Ying’er. I’m in charge of a local performance troupe.” She stepped closer, and Lumine could smell her flowery perfume. “I would love to have you join us.”

“No, thank you,” Lumine told her, inching away. Sounds like a cheap cover for a brothel. “I’m not in need of a job right now.”

Ying’er pouted, but stepped back. “Alright then, sweetie.” She leaned on the doorway of her shop. “I’ll be right here if you decide to come back,” she finished with a wink.

Lumine gave a curt nod before slinking away, back to her search for a bar. She pulled the hood of her cape over her head, sticking to the shadowed walls on her walk. Do I really stick out that much here?

In the distance, she heard the subtle pounding of a drum, and watched, astonished, as the crowded streets parted straight down the middle. An eerie silence filled the previously buzzing plaza. Something was coming.

All the citizens had their heads bowed—Lumine quickly followed suit.

The booming of the drums came closer, and she heard the thunderous marching of armored boots layered into the sound. She glanced up.

There was an entourage of armored soldiers, an assortment of glistening weapons at their sides, escorting a decorated golden carriage.

King Ajax.

What was this? Was there some sort of special occasion taking place?

Much easier to find than expected.

The carriage rolled past. Lumine strained to look at the window while still keeping her head bowed.

Unfortunately, the window was curtained, a velvety red cloth obscuring any view of the king. Lumine wrinkled her nose in disappointment; she had wanted to see what she was up against.

The terrifying rumors of King Ajax never told of what he looked like. Lumine imagined a beastly figure, one with dark shaggy hair and sharp teeth, bones all jutting out in the wrong directions, filleted with raw scars all over.

The carriage continued to move past.

Could she do it? Could she use her magic to take him out right now? There certainly was a large number of people around, and all of them would be suspects; all the easier for her to get away.

However, the guards could easily murder everyone in the plaza if a perpetrator wasn’t found. And, as Ying’er so blatantly pointed out, Lumine didn’t exactly fit in with the Snezhayan citizens.

She would just have to wait. Wait for a better opportunity. Wait to learn more about King Ajax. Wait to plan the best way to kill him.

There was a rustle of murmurs as the citizens returned to their activities, the royal carriage and its guards wheeling out of sight—the air more tense than before.

Taking in a deep breath, she resumed her search.

I need a drink.

* * *

Lumine sat in the corner booth as always, the seat in the bar that could overlook the entire establishment, the place where she could easily see who entered and exited the building.

She sipped at her mug of ale: not enough to become inebriated, but just enough to take some of her stress away. She still listened intently for any utterances about King Ajax.

She kept her eye on a man who was chugging pint after pint of alcohol, complaining about his job, his kids, his wife.

Maybe he’ll complain about his king as well.

“God, I miss Mondstadt,” the man sighed.

Lumine raised a brow. Someone from the conquered land of Mondstadt? He should definitely harbor some resentment for King Ajax.

“Careful there,” the bartender muttered. “The king will have your tongue if you speak ill of him.”

The drunkard scoffed. “The king ain’t here, is he? Too busy with his parties and parades to ever come to a hole-in-the-wall bar.”

The bartender shrugged, silently wiping a glass.

“C’mon,” the man continued. “You don’t think it’s weird how he always invites those performers to the castle? What a dramatic man.” A hiccup. “You think he beds all of them?”

“Probably. Lots of women would want to sleep with the king”

“See, King Ragvindr never did things like that.” He laid his head on the counter. “A modest man. Genuinely cared about his people.”

“King Ajax cares for us. He provides—he’s made Snezhnaya wealthier than ever.”

“Hmph. Is that why he murders people in cold blood? Remember that man that got executed in the street for not bowing to him?”

“Just listen to him, and you’ll be fine.”

Lumine slid out of her booth, making her way to the exit, to a certain brunette woman with a lavender robe.

He likes performers.

A plan started to bubble in her mind as she walked the streets to Ying’er’s shop.

She would slip into the castle with the performance troupe. She would feign illness, seemingly leaving early, when in actuality, she would hide until all the guests had left. King Ajax would retire for the night, alone—and that’s when she would strike.

Lumine smiled, just a bit, confidence coming to her now that she knew what to do.

Her and Aether’s life of freedom felt like a breath away.

* * *

“You’ve certainly improved quite a lot,” Ying’er said, sauntering into Lumine’s quarters.

Lumine set her lyre down. “Guess I’m a quick learner.”

It had been a few weeks since Lumine had arrived in Snezhnaya, and became one of Ying’er performers. She had decided to learn an instrument—the lyre—while staying with Ying’er and the rest of the performers at the hostess’ establishment. She preferred it over becoming a poet or dancer.

Ying’er was right: many people came to watch Lumine sit prettily on stage and play her lyre—her face painted with make-up, and her body adorned with beautiful robes and gowns.

All the while, Lumine anxiously awaited the king’s invitation to their performance troupe. He had invited different groups all over town, though not Ying’er’s yet.

Was this plan a failure? Where was that damned man’s invitation—

“Is that what I think it is?” Lumine asked, eyeing the embellished envelope in her boss’ hand.

Ying’er hummed in affirmation. “The king has finally invited our group to perform at a party tonight.”

Finally. “What an honor,” Lumine said with a smile.

“Very much so.” Ying’er put her hand under Lumine’s chin, examining her face. “Yes...I will have you dressed in our best garments and make-up.”

The woman smiled. “After all, you are our pretty little star.”

* * *

The carriage ride to the castle was filled with the girls’ giggles and whispers, how they wished for the king to whisk them away into a life of riches and royalty, to be his beloved first wife. Lumine kept a hand pressed against her leg—ensuring the dagger hidden under her heavy robes wouldn’t fall out.

She didn’t like to get messy with such a close ranged weapon—she would usually just use her magic from a distance—but she wasn’t going to take a chance if something were to go awry.

As they neared the castle, everyone burst into gasps, admiring the massive stone structure. The excitement doubled as the dozens of other carriages came into view as well.

This is going to be one very extravagant party.

Before she knew it, Lumine was sitting in the great hall, along with the rest of the party goers, awaiting the king’s arrival. She saw the empty throne at the very front of the room, raised on a marble platform, his rightful place above his subjects.

A fanfare of brass instruments blared. The king is here.

The room collectively stood, bowing their heads as the king’s personal guards filed in. Lumine quirked her head to look for King Ajax.

Oh.

The king was not a hideous looking beast at all.

In fact, he was quite the opposite.

He walked in, tall stature carrying an air of importance (and arrogance) on his shoulders with a billowing crimson red cloak, a broad grin plastered on his face. He was young, exactly around Lumine’s age.

He had reddish-brown hair framing his face, locks that glittered like gold in the light of the room, and his eyes were like vortexes—deep whirlpools of the bluest ocean water. All his features were sharp, upturned, like a cunning fox waiting contently to trap its prey.

She watched as he made his way up to his throne, a sickening anxiety spreading through her limbs.

Lumine had never killed anyone so close in age to her—it had always been older men and women. And, of course, she had never found herself attracted to her target.

“Please,” the king spoke, still grinning. “Have a seat.” As he sat on his throne, the rest of the room sat as well.

Lumine swallowed the lump in her throat. His voice was light, playful even.

Was that truly the murderous king of Snezhnaya?

“A toast, to you, my people,” he said, raising a golden goblet. “Let the festivities begin.”

Lumine gulped down her own glass of wine, then shook her head.

I’m here for a job. Not romance.

The room filled with chatter, and Ying’er motioned to Lumine and the rest of the musicians to the corner where they would be performing their music for the night.

Lumine gathered her lyre, shuffling towards her spot in her heavily layered robes. Her mouth was set in a taut line.

A momentary lapse in judgement.

As she played the first few notes, her eyes flickered to the king, who was busy greeting various nobles at his throne. She narrowed her eyes at him, at that sly, sly smile on his face.

It won’t happen again.

* * *

The night seemed to drag on forever. After what seemed like an eternity of playing music for the room—as other patrons ate and danced and conversed—the musicians were finally taking a break.

Lumine delightfully chewed through expensive meats and breads as various actors, dancers, and poets took the floor in front of King Ajax to present their pieces.

The king seemed to be entertained, joining on some of the performances himself.

That drunkard from the bar was right. King Ajax was quite dramatic, inserting himself into the spotlight whenever he so pleased. How pretentious.

The crowd clapped and cheered as another performance was brought to an end, an air of boisterous chatter resuming. Lumine swallowed her last piece of food, making her way to Ying’er.

Time to get started.

“Ying’er,” Lumine called to her boss, clenching her side. “I feel a bit sick.”

The brunette woman raised a brow. “You were looking quite well before.”

“Yes, it was very sudden,” Lumine responded, turning to the exit. “I think I will just head back now.”

“So soon, dear? We haven’t even introduced ourselves to the king yet.”

Lumine was already on her way out. “I’ll see you back at the shop.”

She slipped past the guards patrolling the halls, ducking into the nearest empty room, a storage closet of sorts. Perfect.

She hiked her long robes up, unsheathing her dagger, cutting away at the garments. Sorry, Ying’er. But I can’t fight in this. She threw the discarded fabric in a dark corner, where they would be forgotten about.

She slid the knife back into its sheath, and cracked the door open the tiniest bit—enough to watch the entrance into the great hall.

Now, all she had to do was wait.

* * *

Lumine would have fallen asleep had it not been for the two guards who stopped to converse right outside her door. Within a matter of seconds, Lumine had gone from sleepily nodding off to firmly clenching her weapon in her hand, nerves buzzing on high alert.

“That party dragged on forever,” one of the guards said. “I don’t know how King Ajax does it. Isn’t he exhausted every night?”

“Not sure. He seems to enjoy it.”

“He’s been gone a while now. Should we check on him?”

Lumine tightened her grasp on her dagger. He was gone?

“No. He likes to be alone at night. He’ll kill you if you interrupt him.”

“Oh...Should we just go to the other side of the castle then? So we don’t...interrupt him?”

“...Sounds like a good idea.”

The sound of their footsteps faded, and Lumine dared a peek out the door to scope out the hallway.

There were no other guards, and the boisterous sounds of the party were long gone.

Lumine slid out of the closet, sneaking down the hall, starting her search for King Ajax.

Sounds like he’s still here somewhere. Alone.

This job was getting easier and easier.

Too easy.

* * *

Please be in this room.

There was a great stone door before her, one she had come to after a mind-numbingly exhaustive search through the entirety of the large castle. She pushed on the door, as slowly and as quietly as possible, then looked in.

She nearly cried out in relief.

Sitting in the middle of the room was King Ajax, his back turned to her.

He was completely silent, unmoving, in this empty stone room. Was he asleep? No, it looked more like meditation.

Lumine slinked in, silently, conjuring the elemental energy of the wind in the room.

She would take every bit of air out of his body. Quick, quiet, no mess. It was the method she had always used.

She closed her eyes to focus, feeling the pull of air from his lungs.

He was going to die, and she was going to be free, free with her brother—

WHOOSH!

Lumine opened her eyes just in time to see Ajax rush towards her.

His hand wrapped around her throat, and he slammed her into the ground. All of the breath in her body hissed out of her, and she clawed at his hand.

“Who are you?” he growled.

She stopped prying at his hold, quickly yanking out her dagger, and slashing at his face.

He dodged, forcing him to loosen his grip on her.

She slashed again at his hand, throwing herself away from him as he recoiled in pain. She rubbed at her neck, gasping for breath. The king was looking at the gash across his fingers.

Shitshitshit.

Lumine quickly focused her energy on the earth below, trying to create shackles out of stone to hold him in place, or to just bury him alive.

The ropes of earth sprang out of the ground. His eyes flickered to the coils as they rushed for him.

Yes!

But then a swirling mass of water appeared, engulfing him, destroying the chains in the process.

What—?!

A sharp stream of water shot out from the bubble, coiling around Lumine before she could react. She was pulled to the ground, bound, and unable to move.

The bubble of water dissipated, and Ajax stepped out, eyes ablaze. He approached Lumine.

“Who are you?” he asked again, less angry, more inquisitive.

She strained against the chains of water, her elemental energy unable to rid them. She locked eyes with him. “You’re a magic user.”

He squatted next to her. “You are too,” he responded, the smallest ghost of a smile on his lips. He took her dagger into his hands, weighing it. “Now, why were you trying to kill me?”

Lumine bit her cheek. No, she couldn’t sell Diluc out; he could still get Aether killed.

“That’s how you conquered Mondstadt and Liyue so easily. You used magic,” she pushed, ignoring his question. “That’s forbidden.”

He barked out a laugh, wiping his bloodied hand on her robes. “And yet, here we are, two magic users in one room.” He pointed the dagger at Lumine’s neck. “Tell me why you were trying to kill me, before I make it only one. I won’t ask again.”

“You’re going to kill me anyway,” Lumine said. “I’m a magic user. That threatens your power, doesn’t it?”

Ajax studied her for a second, pulling the dagger back, just a bit. “True.” He tilted his head. “But I’ve never actually met another magic user before.”

She averted his intense gaze. “So what are you going to do? Keep me alive and experiment on me?”

“No.” He stood. “How about this...in exchange for sparing your life, you become my student.”

…

What?

“You mean learn magic from you?” Lumine glared at him. “How do you know I won’t kill you in the future?”

“You won’t,” he said. “This murder attempt? Wasn’t personal—you tried to kill me from a distance. Someone must have sent you.” He closed his eyes, squeezing the hilt of the dagger. After some shaking, it disintegrated into dust.

“Also, you can’t kill me,” he continued, opening his eyes. “You’re severely untrained. You saw how easily I subdued you.” A small smile. “All the more reason to learn from me.”

Maybe this was the gods taking mercy on Lumine. Ajax didn’t kill her right away; she had a chance to live, to get back home to Aether.

“What’s in it for you? This only seems to benefit me,” she said to Ajax.

He hummed, thinking. “A potentially powerful weapon,” he responded, eyes glinting.

Maybe, once she learned more magic, she could overtake him, and complete her job.

She locked eyes with him.

“You have a deal.”

The ghost of those words burned bitter on her tongue.

* * *

Lumine nearly died the next morning.

“You did what?!” she gasped out, after deathly choking on a part of her breakfast.

She was currently sitting across from Ajax in his elegant dining room, who had just informed her that he had announced their marriage.

He leaned back in his chair. “A random new woman living in the king’s castle? Bound to raise many rumors,” he said, nonchalant. “This way, there are no rumors, and we can train without being questioned.”

Lumine worried her lip. He has a point.

“I don’t—We don’t have to...do anything in public, do we?” she asked.

“No.” He smirked. “Unless you want to, pretty girl.”

She grimaced. “No, thank you.” Here for a job, not romance, she reminded herself, no matter how handsome this cocky bastard is. Not to mention, she still planned to kill him.

And so, Lumine’s days were filled with training, pretending to the servants and maids she was King Ajax’s fiancée. She was trapped, as Ajax reminded her many times that if she tried to leave, he would swiftly execute her.

She learned more about him, as much as she didn’t want to. She saw that he did really care for his people, and provided for them as best he could—though he wasn’t above using his power to strike down those in his way, whether it was an enemy or a citizen who simply disrespected his reign.

And that was ultimately what he wanted: power. To have power over everyone in the land of Teyvat. He had endless ambition—Lumine could credit him that much.

Some days, she caught herself imagining it as well: a world she could rule over, have everyone bend to her will, set the laws so people like her and Aether could live without fear, and be provided for. In some ways, she could relate to Ajax’s desires. In some ways, she could justify his methods.

It very much disgusted her, at first. But then, it was liberating. To have someone who could understand the darker sides to her being, understand the blood on her hands.

Even Aether could never fully understand her. How part of her was always glad to be given magical powers to defend herself and those she cared about. How part of her enjoyed her current situation.

After all, she was living lavishly, compared to the impoverished life she had before. She had every meal provided for, luxuriously, and a soft bed to lay in every night. No threat of the authorities finding out about her powers and murdering her.

Could she perhaps bring Aether here?

Ajax had spared her—was it too much of a stretch to believe he would spare her twin as well?

If Aether could be brought here, she wouldn’t have to kill Ajax. She wouldn’t have to kill perhaps the only person in Teyvat that knew who she truly was.

* * *

“If you found another magic user,” she asked Ajax over dinner, “would you train them as well?”

Ajax took a sip of wine from his goblet. “No.”

“...No?”

A small smile, a slight flash of his canines. “I can’t have my weapons outnumbering me, now can I?”

Lumine’s mouth went dry. “If you won’t train them...what would you do with them?”

“Kill them.” He set the cup down. “They would be a threat.”

“I’m not a threat?”

Ajax barked out a laugh. “No, Lumine. No, you are not.”

Ah.

So she and Aether couldn’t be together here. Aether was still in danger of being outed by Diluc.

“Why?” Ajax questioned. “Are you lonely here?”

“I’m trapped in your castle. What do you think?”

He rested his head on his hand. “My bed is open at night, if you’d like.”

Lumine drove her knife through her food. “You’re insufferable.”

“Oh, Lumine, it’s just banter,” he said, chuckling. “You don’t think we’re friends? I quite like your company.”

She pursed her lips, staying silent.

“You don’t have to lie to me.” Ajax stared right at her. “I see you while we train. You like it here. You like becoming more and more powerful.”

He leaned over the table. “You and I are very similar.” He smiled. “There’s a hunger in your eyes. You want exactly what I have.”

Lumine stood abruptly. “We are nothing alike,” she spat uselessly. He sees right through me.

“I told you, you don’t have to lie to me,” Ajax responded, sitting back in his chair. “We are already married. We could rule together—as partners.”

...What?

“I thought I was your weapon.” Her knuckles were white from clutching the edge of the table.

“Partner if you so choose.” His blue eyes narrowed slightly. “Weapon if not.”

What game is he playing? “There has to be some sort of catch.” He was essentially offering her his power as king, even if it was just partially.

“No catch,” he said. “Like I said, if you refuse, you’ll just continue your little life of entrapment, as my weapon.”

“One of these options is obviously better than the other.”

Ajax laughed, genuinely, his expression softening, just a bit. “I guess one is.”

She gave him a look, quizzical, before swiftly leaving the room, his proposal still hanging in the night.

As the guards escorted her back to her room, she played the conversation over and over again in her mind.

Would it be so bad? Would it be so bad as King Ajax’s consort, his companion through his crusade of Teyvat?

He was right: part of her deep down ached for that kind of power.

But joining Ajax meant sacrificing her dear brother.

The aching desire hissed, Is that a sacrifice you are going to make?

* * *

The castle’s stone floors were freezing on Lumine’s feet as she traversed through the halls barefoot. No shoes meant no sound. No sound meant she could surprise the guards, getting the upper hand to take them out. Already, there was a trail of dead guards behind her as she passed through the corridors, the air stripped from their lungs.

Her sheer white nightgown fluttered around her as she dashed about, and in the dim moonlight waning through the windows, she thought herself a ghost, an angel of death. She was on a path she could not stop.

She knew exactly where he was. After spending so many days trapped here, of course she knew where the king’s quarters were.

She knew him like clockwork: what days he would stay up in his study, what days he would retire to his chambers and when. She knew where his guards were, when they would switch patrols, when their protection would be the weakest.

And when it came time, she stood outside of his door, wavering on the spot slightly.

She shook her head, trying the door. Locked.

Taking a breath in, she rapped her knuckles on the hardwood.

She heard rustling beyond the heavy oak door, her heartbeat picking up. She would have to get in there quick, before he looked behind her and saw his guards missing.

The door swung open, a flash of anger on Ajax’s face until he saw who it was.

He gave her a closed-eye smile. “Ah, Lumine, to what do I owe the pleasure—”

Lumine stood on the tips of her toes, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt, pulling him in for a kiss.

She could feel him go rigid under her touch. She walked him backwards, further into the room, closing the door behind her with her foot.

As the door shut, he broke away from her. “Are you accepting my proposal?” he whispered, his hands clutched around her arms.

Lumine nodded, going for another kiss, arms slinking around his shoulders. This time, he melted into her touch, pulling until he was under her on his bed.

He fell for it.

Pity crept into her heart. From the way he breathed her in, the way he held her in his arms, there was a softness she had never seen from him.

He loved her.

She was his weapon, and now, his greatest weakness.

“I’m sorry,” she said against his lips.

His eyes opened, those ocean eyes on her as she pulled the air from his lungs with ease.

You shouldn’t have trained me.

His hand reached for her throat, but went to his own as he gasped and choked.

She wrapped her own hands around his, pressing down. She slammed her eyes shut. She didn’t want to see his face.

He thrashed wildly, and she repeated I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’msorryimsorry over and over again until he went still under her.

…

...

She opened her eyes, the world blurry around her. She wiped away the tears pooling in her vision, and looked down at Ajax.

He was unmoving, eyes glazed over, arms limp at his side.

Lumine reached for his throat, hand shaking, fingers checking for a pulse.

He’s dead.

She scrambled off of him, crumbling into a ball on the floor.

I killed him.

Her breathing was uneven—she was the one gasping for breath now as uncontrollable sobs racked through her body.

I am so sorry, Ajax.

* * *

“Lumi?”

Lumine turned to see Aether looking at her with worry.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

A breeze rustled by. Lumine turned back to look over green fields that stretched as far as she could see.

“I’m okay,” she responded.

“Okay,” he repeated. He smiled a bit, pulling an envelope from his pocket. “Diluc’s hawk came this morning. He sends warm wishes to us both.”

After the assassination of King Ajax, Lumine decreed Snezhnaya a freed country, a country with no ruler, and returned the lands of Mondstadt and Liyue back to their rightful heirs. Diluc, now the restored king of Mondstadt, gave Lumine and Aether the riches he promised, and a home deep in the countryside for the peaceful life they so desperately wanted.

But sometimes Lumine had nightmares of Ajax.

She would be sitting next to him, on their thrones as the King and Queen of Snezhnaya. Sometimes, little princes and princesses of theirs would be running around as well.

They would have conjured all of Teyvat together.

They would have loved each other.

Lumine would wake up, tears in her eyes, heart heavy with desire for that life.

And then she would cry because her life would never be peaceful ever again.

#genshin impact #genshin childe #genshin lumine #chilumi #fanfiction #fanfic #me

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impala1967dwinchester · 3 years ago

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Hello I just wanted to say ur amazing writer and I was wondering if I can request Winchester brother x sister reader where the reader is the youngest Winchester maybe around 16- 17 you can choose the fits but I was hoping u can do like where the reader is depressed and has ED (eating disorder ) and doesn’t tell the brothers and one day it gets worse and passed out the brothers are worried trying to help her out but it hard for her I hope this ok if not I can do different request it just I found comfort in angst topics with struggles I go through you know sorry if this doesn’t makes sense

It started years ago. To be exact it started when your father lost it, going mental on your oldest brother Dean. The three of you were thick as thieves and it physically hurt to see the complete and utter destruction your father left behind for Dean to clean up.

Living your life on the road was okay, you had two great older brothers that kept you up. Kept you in good spirits but it's hard when your whole world around you is crashing. You know it, your family knows but no one else.

How Dean and Sam ever dealt with the massive weight on their shoulders. It blew your mind. You. You weren't worth anything, especially not your mother burning on the ceiling. Your father resented you. You didn't need him to say it, because you could tell. Dean was his soldier, Sam was the disappointment, but the smartest out of the three of you. But you, you were the reason all four of you were in this mess. The reason why John was searching for that revenge every day.

Covering it up with the idea of saving people, but you were smart, so very smart. Sam had complimented you many times on your quickness, and sharpness when it came to the lore, but regarding your father, it was never the approval you were looking for.

Lots of things happened, to get you to the age of seventeen and drowning in the pit of your stomach all because you all no desire to be here anymore. You weren't helping your older brothers you were just in the way.

In the way of progress, a major setback to them. For them to prove to John that they would be like him, do like him. They'd have to leave you behind. It was for the best.

It started off as a way to conserve the little food the four of you had. At the ripe age of seven you learned quickly that offering your food to Sam was a better idea, or skipping off to lay in a shitty motel bed was better than eating. Yes your stomach would growl and the acid would burn, but anything to keep the weight of your brother off your shoulders.

As you grew up you learned that if you stayed at school as long as you could it was the best. Dean had just learned how to drive driving was his passion, reading was Sam. And yours... yours was to stay away, out of the way.

By the age of fifteen, you had your patterned packed down and tight. You leave with Sam since he drove you to school, and since he was a senior. You felt a wave of dizziness almost every morning. The night's dinner is still wrapped in its paper bag. Claiming to take it for lunch. Dean never argued with you. Kiss your forehead and hitting the pillow quicker than he hit on the girls that passed by the motel's door.

Your father was already starting to become absent. The shadow of what a perfect family no one ever talked about. You thrived in the school building though. Sam kissed your forehead his height greatly giving him the advantage before saying his goodbyes to you and running to meet with his senior friends.

You walked alone in the hallways. The bullying started almost immediately the second you stepped into the building. Near of my brothers were aware of the shit I went through on a daily basis. Years later they still weren't.

You had settled on never telling them about my dislike for eating, you hoped and prayed most night that they'd never find out. It was better without their acknowledgment of your weakness. Who knows they might be the same way everyone was at school.

The last year had been hard for you and your brothers, your father making less, and less of an effort with all three of you. Your relationship was already straining to stay alive, the burning and hurt in the bit of your stomach was something that was constant now, and from what you could tell it wasn't going to get any better.

Your brothers are now in their early 20's still taking care of their baby sister. Nights you guys sat down for dinner were odd, without John there. The quiet days where a now older Sam would drive you to school, along by yourself all day long. The teasing being relentless.

The whole idea, you were constantly dizzy, constantly on the verge of falling asleep no matter if you were in class, or at the crappy motel room with your brothers.

Tonight though, tonight your world fell apart as you walked in through the door, your final year of schooling was just starting your summer of staying inside and reading was over. The hot day of September had gotten to you more than you were willing to say. As you walked in through the motel door, the cool air hitting you in your face, and the hot air of the evening summer day kicking you in your ass.

It was too much, down you and your light bookbag went. Dean had been on one of the motels' beds when he heard you fall, Sam behind hadn't been able to catch you even with his long arms.

You don' remember much. You do remember hearing the sounds of your brothers frantically rushing around the room, one dropping his gun, and the other rushing over to your side.

"Dean what the hell just happened?" Sam asked in a frantically worried voice. "I don't know all I heard was the engine of Baby, and then her fall to the floor," Dean said rushing to your thin frame. Neither had noticed until now when they finally had time to pay attention to their baby sister that she was rather thinner than a normal seventeen-year-old.

Paler then normal, "Sam do you notice it?" Dean asked as Sam pulled the lightweight bookbag from your small shoulders. A small hum came from Sams's lips, maybe it was too much to say it. The words making truth when they leave his lips.

Sam picked you up feeling just how boney you were. "How did we let her get this bad Dean?" He questioned, Dean kept his head down grabbing her bag and following behind Sam to the bed's side.

When you woke up your two brothers were talking quietly in the tiny kitchen. Sam saw you try to get up their conversation stopped at a halt, and they both came over to help you.

Quiet overcame the room. Dean was the first to speak. "How are you feeling, Y/n?" He asked, you shrugged your shoulders, the ache in your body was strong, but not enough to make that your brother's problems.

"Y/n please be honest with us... Is this the first time something like this has happened?" Your brother Sam asked. Swallowing hard, before talking you answered Dean's question. "I feel fine guys really nothing to worry about." Answering Sams was going to be harder, you don't really remember the last time something like this happened, maybe last week in school, maybe a few years ago. "I don't remember Sam." That was all you said. Sad expression littered their coarse and worn faces.

"Y/n, how long have been like this?" Dean asked, furrowed brows as he asked the question. "Like what?" You replied. "Like how you don't eat at dinner and think we don't notice, how long Y/n? Just answer please." Dean said.

You tried opening your mouth, but the pressure of being truthful with your brothers was overbearing. Trying again and still, nothing slipped out. Sam ur interrupted your train of thought. "Since dad started on with his hunt for yellow eyes?" Simple questions always have a simple answer.

"If you want an honest answer I'd say seven or eight." You said, pushing yourself up from laying in the bed to sitting up against the headboard. The gasps for air were real between your two brothers. One hand came to rest on top of yours while the other paced around the motel room.

Your guess as to which was mad, and empathic wasn't hard for you. Dean pacing around the room meant he was angry, and Sam's empathic hand on top of yours meant he to wanted help. "Why didn't you tell us?" Dean questioned me, Sam turned to look at his older brother. "That won't help, we were talking remember. We need to help her, bot questions her about her actions or even her reason why." Sam said, Dean, calm down as he continued to pace.

Sam returned his attention to you. Hand still laying on top of yours, "Y/n why don't we, all the three of us help you yeah?" He said you laughed a little and Dean looked up from his pacing feet. "I don't think you guys could ever help me. I've been and felt this way for ten years now. This is just how I am now. Broken and worthless to this Winchester family." You said the strain of holding back was harder than you thought. Dean had paused his pacing staring at you and Sams's hand had engulfed yours.

Dean came over, putting his finger under your chin, grabbing your attention. "You listen here, to Sam and I. We care more about you than you'll ever know. We don't care what any person thinks, we don't care about Dad as much as we care about our little sister. Now believe me when we say that all we want to do is help you, helping you is what Sam and I are here for. Y/n you aren't alone, you aren't, worthless, and you most definitely aren't broken. We can help you all you have to do is let us in." Dean said sitting down next to you when he was down.

"We love you and don't wanna see so much potential be wasted especially when we knew we could have helped you," Sam added. You were having a hard time believing them, but nothing would stop you from trying especially when you had your brothers by your side.

#anon tag #send me anons #sweet anons #thanks anon #anon headcanons #anons welcome #lovely anon #anon #anon request #supernaturalagnst #supernatualfluff #supernatural imagine #supernatural one shot #supernatural fanfiction #supernatural fic #supernatural #supernatural x reader

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jean-does-not-have-a-horseface · 4 years ago

Text

Last kiss

This is uhm, I took three days to even brainstorm this as a whole and it was supposed to involve a lot of other things but I decided to leave it here and see if you guys wanted to see more of this

Summary: Zeke confesses to you and all youre forced to have to bid your lover goodbye in hopes of sacrificing yourself for greater good.

Pairing: Levi/Reader, Zeke Yeager/Reader

Maybe you should have died back then, while reclaiming Shiganshina, with all of your other comrades before Zeke ever had a chance to lay his eyes on you. Maybe you should have been shot by Kenny or get eaten by a Titan on a casual expedition, anything would've been more preferable than having to listen to Zeke confessing to you.

"You understand this is something you can't tell to your subordinates right?"

This was pure, painful, agonizing torture. Sitting there with your back turned to him, hidden in the darkness of an alley. You didn't know how to respond and frankly you didn't even want to. It felt like daggers piercing through your thin sensitive skin, through your camel colored leather jacket.

"I don't know what you expect from me Zeke." You speak, just above your breath, back still turned to him and your eyes shut closed as you refused to spare a look on his form or even on his shadow.

In all honesty you don't feel like he expects something from you moretheless. Perhaps he enjoys having you cornered like a rat right then and there and perhaps this is his way of trying to get to Levi's head, to strip him of anything he has left and make him a weak opponent.

Then again if he wanted to get in his head he wouldn't be here, talking to you for all that matters. He's be attacking him.

"Come on! Why do you even associate yourself with that midget of man. I could-"

"Stop!"

"I could take you see the world and maybe-"

"Stop, really" You halt his speech once again, silently, as if you're trying not to wake him up from that idiotic dream world of his in which he thinks you can ever even have a shared future. This time you turn to look at him, wide eyes painted with agony, with hot flowing streaks of tears with watered eyes and clear stained cheeks. "You really think I can forgive a man who massacred my friends? You think you have any right to intervene between me and Levi?"

As he begs you to reconsider your beliefs, to have a chance of heart, you avert your gaze to the stone ground of the alleyway. You can't bear to spend your gaze on him not even if it's driven by rage. Not anymore. Yet you decide not to speak of your personal hatred towards him. You only mutter him a tiny 'I'll think about it' as you begin to stomp away.

It's not like Hange would ever advice you to engage so close with an enemy who slaughtered your comrades to no end that eventful day.

You're surprised when you find out she thinks otherwise to the point you regret ever speaking of it. Withholding important information on the enemy is treason, an act you are not about to commit for you've fought very hard for the people inside the walls to be alive an free. So why is Hange depriving you from living that way.

Steel grey eyes blink into yours with mutted rage as you speak of Zeke's words concerning their mighty owner. Not only was that blond bearded piece of shit the cause of all his comrades death he now had the audacity to claim you his most prized possession. Levi just despises the way Zeke thinks that everything belongs to him, how he's taken everything from him and now is launching on for more.

Levi, although he never speaks of it outloud, can see the look of horror and disgust plastered on your face as Hange encourages you to take a positive action against Zeke's proposal. And even the sound of it manages to pain him in ways he had never thought were possible.

"What if he kills her, Hange. What if this is all a plan and that's why he didn't want her telling us about it."

Hange answers in inaudible muffles, unsure of what to say or believe. He watches as you try to object, to shriek your way out of this horrible mess you're about to be put in and all because you love him. And Hange knows even if she refuses to bring it up at the moment, as if it means nothing to anyone.

"Dedicate your fucking heart, this is your oath!" His breath is cut short as he utters the words, looking directly in your eyes, flooding your insides with guilt and horror for what's to come next.

"No" it's a simple, rebellious reply, that you've only just decided to adopt when addressing him "I'm not doing anything if it means I'm going to lose you."

Levi bites his lower lip and squints his eyes shut; how can he ever even fathom having to endure seeing you in Zeke's arms and why should this be done for the sake of humanity. You weren't an object to be used against Zeke, he could scream of it at the top of his lungs if the circumstance even so slightly needed it.

"All I'm saying is, approach him."

"He won't believe me."

Hange explains that this weakness he's shown may be the end of him for all you've known, but Levi and you refuse to listen as you fix your pained eyes on each other with despair. It occurs to you that this may be the last time, hopefully in a while, that you ever get to encounter him like this and the thought proceeds to munch on your brain like maggots on a rotting corpse. You're lost in the moment, in his eyes, in Hange's earth shattering statements.

Nothing's fair in war and love you know yet it's difficult to even bat an eye in positive response to this plan as your heart is pressuring to know why you have to be the one to take a stand in taking out the enemy from within. But there's no such answer to your question. Humane emotions are unpredictable, unstable and unusual and in any other circumstance, it wouldn't be bad for Zeke to have fallen for anyone. Given your context though, not only was it bad, it was suffocating. You refused to have anything taken from Levi every again, yet here you are, stepping into the corpses of those words as his despairate eyes are pleading with you in silence.

_____

The plan is simple.

"Zeke?" Tears run down your eyes as your soft voice grazes his eardrums in the lowest of pained tones. He takes a look at your form, particularly in that muddy nightgown that adorns it and then your shoveled hair and that deadbeat expression in your watered orbs.

You reach out to him in the middle of the night, crying, wheezing, supposedly after a fight with Levi, anything to get his sympathy. Seeing his biased behavior over you this will be easy as blinking your eyes.

"P-please take me to see the world!" You utter and watch as Zeke's eyes widen with hard hidden happiness. He can only imagine what has went wrong that has made you decide to come to him but he never asks, nor does he ever ask about Levi, a fact that assures you his motives aren't what you had suspected.

And it tears your heart in a million little pieces in a way no titan ever could; the way he lifts a hand up to caress your cheek, they way his eyes glimmer with love, his ever so respectful movements towards you as if not to force you into anything. Those thoughts, those brain eating maggots are rapidly moving to your chest, to your stomach, everywhere in your body in hopes to leave you hollow, to assist you in that situation.

You don't have to give in to anything he wants. You can work your way around him and establish what you want but be prepared for anything. This is our only chance to be exposed to such a tremendous weakness. Our future is in your hands just as much as it's on our army. Don't let us down.

As that giant, disgusting, furry hand lifts you up from your feet your mind travels to your lover's chaste last kiss on your dry lips. The pleasurable happiness kisses like this would give you has now scattered away in greater sacrifice of this very moment. In the blink of an eye your life can be taken away from your mortal, expansible hands, fading into complete frightening darkness but what happens when all you're left with is a hollowed body who gets to experience pain and misery and no other option than to have to endure. Your heart is burning the insides of your chest, crawling up your skin with sharp claws that rip through flesh, but nothing ever happens. It never bursts, it never slows down it's beating either. You're only trapped, once again like a death sentenced rat, between Zeke's hand and your horrifying emotions.

It'll be over in no time, I promise you it's for the greater good.

Hey! I hope you enjoyed this 💕 if you want to see more leave a request in my askbox. Thank you for reading I love you all💞

#aot #snk #levi x reader #levi ackerman x reader #snk x reader #aot x reader #levi #shingeki no kyojin #levi ackerman #attack on titan #zeke yeager x reader #zeke yeager #zeke aot #levi attack on titan #levi ackerman imagine #levi aot #angst

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tokimihyachi · 4 years ago

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Dainty Fingers

BC Holiday Special #6

Pairing: Yami Sukehiro X Charlotte Roselei

Warnings: None

The melodious sound of the string quartet playing below her room echoed throughout House Roselei and a few meters from their home. Ringing in her ears as she sat up to carefully look from below, basking the warmth of the sun as it touched her skin.

Her grandmother, decided to stay, anointing herself as head of the House for a few days. The reason for her return, was mainly to push her granddaughter to finally 'take a bite' of the man she's been in love with for several years.

The electric blue-eyed maiden smiled at the memory, knowing her grandmother meant well. She was the first to know of such forbidden secret, seeing how the young Roselei was once in a daze as if daydreaming when her Prince Charming would walk through the doors and kiss her on the lips like she always wanted.

She looked over her shoulder, swiftly moving up from the chair she sat on to the scarf she tried sewing. Sewing. Most women had several intrinsic skills that were used to base how good of a wife they would become.

Charlotte in particular had no interest in such whatsoever, but hearing that her former Captain who was dubbed as the 'old and maiden rose' sent her an invitation a few days ago, informing her that she is to be wed to a man, a being she's told her she despised for years, on February the following year.

The former captain of the Blue Rose summoned Charlotte two days ago. Happily rambling about the joys of being engaged and loved, 'called me to brag? so much like you.' she said to herself, preventing herself from rolling her eyes and making any noise that proven she was unintrested to hear her love life.

But her former captain mentioned something about what makes a woman 'wife material' which caught her attention. When the woman listed down all of the requirements that must be met, Charlotte started practicing all of them.

Knitting? She was horrible at it. Compared to the ones her grandmother made, the old woman's creation was beyond beautiful that every pattern was of foliage or flower in flowing swirls, as if together, in print and hue, it told of the oneness of Earth.

Cooking? She nearly burned their kitchen. If not close with a few maids she would've embarassed herself completely if the secret that the next head of House Roselei was not a great cook— a total contrast to her mother; one of the greatest chefs in Clover Kingdom that even the King favored her dishes.

Conversations with men? The worst. Simply trying to hold a conversation with other people was difficult, much less with a man, and what more with him who she loves deeply.

The only thing she seemed to pass was cleaning. Her room has always been tidy. Everything placed where it should be and some even considered their places thoughtful as it was in an area that was most convenient for its use.

She eventually gave up, claiming she really wasn't meant for the job, but she always remembered how exposed his body was to the cold. 'A scarf would be good' she said to herself, smiling when she thought about sewing or creating one.

Despite her greatest efforts, she failed, and failed, and failed.

"A-Ahck!" she cursed, accidentally stinging herself with the needle. Looking at her fingers that were now covered in bandages, she sighed and slumped her back onto the wooden bench of the garden of their base.

"This is hopeless." she said out loud, raising her hand into the air realizing how bad it looked like. 'I'll just wear gloves. It is the winter season so no one would think it's strange...'

"What the heck happened to your hand?" Bolting from her position, she sat up, eyes meeting his dark ones she drowned endlessly in.

Gulping, she tried to open her mouth to speak, but no word came out of it. Without a warning, she hid the scarf she made behind her along with her hands. Yami groaned as he sat beside her, "Show me your hands." he quietly said, eyes staying on her figure that was melting under his gaze.

She looked down and swayed her head left, then right. Yami crushed the cigarette on his hand with his foot, and sighed, "Too late to hide it." was the last phrase he uttered before attempting to see what she was hiding.

The stubborn woman Charlotte is continued to repress it further, stretching her hands upward in the air, and when Yami was able to grab a hold of it, it was only then when he realized how close their faces were to each other.

Her lips were a pale pink that reminded him of a rose bud. The top lip was thinner, but not too thin, and it had a natural cupid's bow; the bottom one was larger and more plush. He stared at them and back to her eyes— repeating this action several times, not knowing what to do.

It was too late for Charlotte now. Her mind completely shut down the moment she understood the direction their actions were heading to. Yami did the first move and placed his lips above hers. Their softness was nothing like the words she spoke at all.

Charlotte froze in place. When the captain of the Black Bulls felt that she wasn't reciprocating the kiss he pulled away, "A-Ah shit. Sorry Prickly Q—" as if acting on impulse, Charlotte wrapped her hands around his neck and pulled him closer.

The first drop of snowfall goes down as they kissed in the coldness of the winter. The snowflakes run down their faces to where their lips meet, both of them tasting the cold drops. Instead of detracting from the intensity of the moment, it brings them to new heights.

Charlotte pushes her lips in more firmly and the wave that runs through him that was intoxicating, making her head swim as he pulls back to take in her beautiful face, feeling tears trailing down her cheeks.

The black-haired man tucked her hair behind her ear, slightly smiling as she was blushing profusely. 'Cute.' he thought so uncharacteristically to himself.

But seeing her cry and release her emotions was something he least expected, was he perhaps that much of a bad kisser? Did his breath smell? But he brushed his teeth thrice before going here to bring the letter Julius asked him to— wait where is the letter!?

He bent down to take the letter that was... open? Accidentally peaking inside of it, he saw a piece of paper that had nothing written on it. 'Damn you, Julius. Did you know this would happen? Tch. Now I owe the old man.' He looked at her again, who was able to calm down thanks to the gentleness of his calloused hands rubbing hers— avoiding places that had bandages.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked hesitantly, "I-If you don't I- It's okay. No pressure." he added, reassuring her as she sniffled in place, holding his hand tighter.

"I-I... I wa-wanted to g-give you this ri-ridiculous scarf." she laughed, crying while doing so. Yami, the careless and sometimes clueless man that he is, roared laughing, 'Seriously,' he thought again, looking at her who was sending him to the underworld with her intense glare. Charlotte swatted his hand and stood up to walk out, only to have Yami pull her into a warm embrace.

"Tsk. I'm not belittling your capabilities or thinking of any other self-degrading thoughts you're having." Yami said, hugging her tighter. Charlotte stopped squirming and pushing him, "This," he said, taking her hand and raising it, "should be taken care of." he finished, planting a soft kiss on her hand that made her breath hitch.

"Looks like even the Prickly Queen can prickle her self." he joked making Charlotte scoff. Her heart wanted to burst right out of her chest, but the heaviness her lungs have been carrying was somehow released with his presence, unlike before that suffocated her.

"Thank you." she whispered, responding to his hug and tightly wrapping her own arms around him. The pain she felt upon prickling her own fingers with the needle already gone and long forgotten, as all she can ever think of is him, who was embracing her— reassuring her that she needed not to be like other women for him to like her back.

#black clover #yami sukehiro #charlotte roselei #yami x charlotte #yamichar #bc #one shot #fluff #yami #charlotte

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arr-jim-lad · 4 years ago

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so, why /is/ Joshu good actually and doesn't deserve all the hate he gets?

Because the hate comes mostly from the people who are incapable of empathizing with what’s honestly a really pitiable person. They only see the negatives and don’t question why he acts like he does. Also, he’s brave AF.

And don’t get me wrong: there ARE negatives. Joshu is by no means a completely misunderstood good person, he’s kind of a scumbag, but so are most JoJo characters. And yet, people apparently just love to hate Joshu specifically.

When I started reading Jojolion, I initially couldn’t help but just feel bad for the guy, because I realized what he struggles with, and how it affects him as a person who’s honestly just trying his best most of the time.

Here’s the big thing that I think puts a LOT in perspective:

Joshu is essentially the prime example of the neglected middle child. He has an older brother who is his father’s pride and joy, an older sister who is a successful model, and a younger, blind sister who everyone coddles. Norisuke is very loving and playful with his daughters and very chummy with his older son, but Joshu never really gets the same loving treatment.

Instead, Joshu is seen treated sternly and unfairly by his brother and father, who both just seem annoyed by his presence. It’s very, painfully clear to me that this is something that makes Joshu extremely insecure, as it can be easily observed from his facial expressions. For example, here’s him when Josuke is given his usual space on family photographs;

He’s shown shivering when Norisuke yells at him, and standing next to his father clearly means a lot to him, but his feelings are not taken into account at all.

This clearly causes him a lot of stress, as he is already insecure about his position in the family, and it makes PERFECT SENSE for him to feel threatened by Josuke, who immediately gained his father’s love, respect, and support.

This kind of behavior towards Joshu is seen again during the beetle battle arc with Jobin, who belittles him several times in a short amount of time, and orders him to cheer for Josuke (threatening him with violence if he won’t), despite Joshu clearly not liking Josuke for reasons that I really can’t judge him for.

And Joshu always obliges.

Mind you - this is not the behavior they have towards Joshu ALL the time, but Joshu is the only Higashikata kid we see getting this kind of treatment.

Joshu, to me, comes across as someone who is absolutely starved for validation from his brother and father, but he never gets it. Instead, he’s constantly pushed around and belittled by them, and treated as an annoyance. A stranger in their home is being given more care and respect than the son.

It just felt really really hard to me to watch what I feel was sadly a fairly realistic depiction of how some children in larger families just don’t get the same amount of love and support as others.

Okay, now I’ll tackle some of the biggest things that people point at when they try to claim that Joshu is a terrible character;

He's a “nice guy” and is possessive over Yasuho who's not interested

He tried to r*pe Yasuho (I’ll say it right here and now: This is a COMPLETE AND UTTER misrepresentation of the events that transpired)

He assaulted Kaato

When we start Jojolion, Joshu has a mistaken impression that him and Yasuho are a couple. That assumption is not completely groundless on his part, because both him and Yasuho confirm that they DID kiss, so you really can’t blame him for having a certain idea of a relationship.

When first seeing Josuke and Yasuho, Joshu gets the wrong idea and believes that Josuke was at the very least being extremely inappropriate to Yasuho, with him being naked and all. He immediately tries to save her by attacking him.

Joshu is indeed very possessive of Yasuho and while that’s not something that can be excused, we CAN track down to the reason why he acts that way, and that reason once again goes back to him being neglected by his family.

It looks to me like Yasuho remained his friend because she pitied him, as she off-handedly acknowledges how poorly socialized he is;

If his father and brother cared to give him a better example and lead him, he would probably be less of a creep. Instead, all he had was his confused feelings, the entitlement that come from being raised in a rich family, and no one to teach him how to properly behave - mind you that he also grew up without a mother.

The reason he clings to Yasuho as much as he does is very likely because she gave him the empathy that he feels like he lacks at home. She’s essentially his comfort person.

I think it’s also important to point out that Joshu is not possessive of Yasuho in an objectifying manner - he genuinely cares for her and wants to protect her. That doesn’t excuse some of his actions of course, but I think it’s still fair to acknowledge it.

Next, the r*pe accusation, and context is EVERYTHING here.

Here’s what happened to lead up to the so-called r*pe attempt, and this includes spoilers for the Paper Moon King arc (Vol.6, Chapers 23-25)

Yasuho was attacked by a stand that made everyone look the same to her, and was unable to tell one person from the other. She called Josuke for help, but while waiting for him, she ran into Joshu.

What followed was a whole slew of statements that Joshu TERRIBLY misinterpreted, as his thirsty unsocialized ass tends to do.

One thing leads to another and Joshu takes off his pants - at which point Yasuho realized that he’s not Josuke, at which point she screams Josuke’s name, and Joshu practically freezes in place, the gears in his head probably starting to turn a bit. And then Yasuho knocks him out and that’s where that ends.

I’d say that Joshu was definitely over-eager to get into Yasuho’s pants, but he only did what he thought she wanted, and I believe that if he wasn’t knocked out when he was, he would probably back off once the mistake was acknowledged. Joshu did not want to r*pe Yasuho. That was NEVER his intent.

Joshu is someone who’s entitled, but he’s not evil.

Last thing I see people point to when shit talking Joshu is his harassment of Kaato, and honestly, I am shocked that people are even remotely able to misinterpret that scene, which does nothing but show how protective Joshu is of his family, and how quick he is to defend them.

The following is a spoiler of Vol.14, Chapter 58.

We see the mother of the Higashikata family return after being imprisoned for 15 years for killing a child. She is a murderer and enters the house uninvited, possibly while everyone else was still sleeping.

This is how Norisuke, the father, reacts:

To reiterate:

The father is so startled by the presence of this woman, that he screams and falls on the ground with shock. He then proceeds to yell at her, demanding for her to get out. She doesn’t.

The convicted murderer then proceeds to walk towards Daiya, the youngest daughter, and that’s when Joshu immediately takes action.

He trips Kaato with a chair and then proceeds to speak to her with a very clear intent to try to make her leave.

Is what he said inappropriate? Abso-fucking-lutely. But that was the INTENT.

I genuinely don’t understand why people think this is something that proves that Joshu is a terrible person when what he’s doing is honestly really damn brave.

Think back to how Norisuke reacted to Kaato. For what Joshu knew, she could’ve had an extremely dangerous ability, but he jumped in to stop her from reaching his little sister anyway.

One last thing, and this is a spoiler for some of the most recent chapters of Jojolion; the Endless Calamity arc (Vol.24, chapter 95)

I want to point out one more extremely brave thing Joshu has done; He saved Yasuho’s life while once again possibly putting his own life in danger.

Here’s the scene: Joshu and his sisters just watched his older brother possibly murder their father during a heated confrontation and a clash of ideals.

During this, Yasuho is currently dying. Her stand is trapped in a cellphone, and not close enough to an electrical socket to escape. Jobin had FULL INTENT to kill her. But then this scene happens;

The phone is suddenly by the socket, and Paisley Park got to escape. We never see it being moved, but there is a panel specifically directing our attention to Joshu’s foot.

Someone moved the phone to let Paisley Park escape, and all signs point to that being Joshu.

Again - Joshu, who just watched his brother possibly murder his father, and who had fully attempted murdering his friend. From what Joshu was concerned, nothing would stop Jobin from killing him as well.

Joshu has flaws. He’s entitled, he’s annoying and he’s creepy. He’s also very stupid and very naive at times.

But there are also reasons for why he turned out this way, and those reasons are just.. plainly sad. I can’t help but to pity this character and just hope the best for him, because he deserves to feel loved by someone because he’s not a bad person.

Personally, I think Joshu is a really interesting character and I thoroughly enjoyed every most moments featuring him, especially interacting with his family, because their relationships come across very realistic and lovable (minus the times Joshu is unfairly belittled).

He’s also a really funny character whose ideas, thoughts, and opinions and just a delight to read every time he gets to just act casually.

PS - his hairstyle is great and y’all are just mean

#jjba meta #joshu higashikata #jojolion #jojo's bizarre adventure #joshu #Anonymous

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shinneth · 4 years ago

Note

Spill the tea on Stevinel (just because I saw one for conniverse) And yes, I'm not on Anonymous. Because I'm a proud stevinel shipper and no one's going to stop me from loving it, also your blog is cool

And you know what? That’s the right attitude to have! People should be free to express what they ship without shielding themselves with anonymity. I don’t blame the people that do these days - antis are fucking dangerous people - but goddamn, people. It’s fiction.

So I commend you for shipping Stevinel openly and proudly! Hard to believe it’s actually considered a bold and brave move just to be open and honest about harmless preferences these days.

That said, I’m sorry it took so long to get to this. I felt you deserved an epic, given how unexpectedly successful my tirade on why Connverse is a shit ship with an undeserved golden reputation was...

But the truth is, even though I’m very much a Stevinel shipper, it’s definitely not my OTP.

And it’s very tricky for me to figure out how to spill the tea on Stevinel in a way that’s distinct from me doing the same with Stevidot.

Because, well, let’s face it: these two ships, beyond being very similar in nature, have also endured identical hardships from the fandom.

All the death threats Stevinel fans get from the raging antis for daring to ship something so “problematic/immoral/wrong/not Connverse”?

Stevidot fans have been treated that exact same way for years. And still are. For the exact same reasons.

Both Stevinel and Stevidot shippers are valid, but the fandom constantly turns a blind eye to Rebecca Sugar’s husband who also worked on the show outright saying gem x human ships are FAIR GAME.

And also turn a blind eye to the recent interview where Sugar herself stated that the gems are more like AI - a conclusion I and many others deduced ages ago just by how gems are portrayed in the show.

But by god, they’ll hang on Matt Burnett’s word that “grown gems” are a thing even though canon itself explicitly states that GEMS DON’T GROW.

Just like how despite Maya Petersen outright admitting that Aroace!Peridot is just her headcanon, people treat it like the fucking gospel now.

(no offense to anyone who’s committed to that particular headcanon - I just don’t really see it with Peridot in particular and it’s really fucking stupid to claim it’s 100% canon when the source herself explicitly said it wasn’t)

Well, it’s canon that Spinel kissed Steven and he didn’t turn into dust. And Steven was already well on his way down the path of self-destruction at this point in time; he would’ve gone monster whether this happened or not.

Also, how often does a character get the “heart eyes” expression for just a platonic love?

If there was ever a scene where Connie or Steven had heart eyes, no doubt most of the pricks would scream “YES!!!! UNDENIABLE PROOF THAT THEY’RE IN LOVE!!!”

But when it’s Spinel, suddenly it doesn’t count? Really?

How convenient.

There’s also the stupid idiots who saw the conceptual development of Spinel in that movie artbook and saw some vague color keys during a conceptual stage and claimed that Spinel was “family” to Steven - which of course must mean “related” and therefore must make Stevinel an incestuous relationship!

Which is bull. Also shit. It’s already common knowledge that gems don’t work that way. She was the designated playmate for Steven’s mother. Nothing more.

Of course, most gems who come in Steven’s orbit end up being sort of a family to him.

But everyone seems to have this impression that a gem being part of Steven’s family means they become additional surrogate mom figures.

And yeah no, that’s dumb and wrong. Garnet and Pearl are really the only ones I’d consider actual “mom figures”. Amethyst’s more of a big sister. Everyone else can vary depending on perspective, but I’ve never seen any of the other gems as anything close to a motherly figure for Steven. Any time I see shit about Lapis or Peridot being regarded as “gem moms” to Steven, I laugh my ass off. They are so not moms or any kind of authoritative figure for Steven. Bismuth at best is more of the fun-loving aunt.

There are more roles in a family than just a paternal/maternal substitute. In fact, I believe Steven has considered Connie to be part of his family well before they hooked up in canon.

(as a side-note, I love how people who are allegedly SO squicked out by age gap ships totally pardon Connverse - you guys realize Connie was 14 in Future, right? Possibly 15 depending on the time scale? There’s gonna be a point in the relative near future where Steven is 18 and Connie isn’t - why don’t I hear you assholes angst about that “atrocity”, huh?)

I honestly do consider the CG B-Team as part of Steven’s family, but more in a loose sense. But by that same token, I consider Connie as part of the family in a similar manner.

Especially since Spinel was shoved off to live with the Diamonds after the movie - and the Diamonds themselves have a very fucked-up relationship among themselves to the point where I honestly hesitate to put a familial label on it at all - it’s extra stupid to try and paint Stevinel as something with incestuous overtones when it clearly doesn’t.

Spinel does happen to be a perfect representative of how full of shit antis are about age gaps, though.

While Peridot’s age has always been left vague, we know she can’t be 5K or older due to being an Era 2 gem. Due to her utter lack of knowledge of Era 1 events (or being completely sold on the Diamonds’ propaganda) and her general inexperience with her own equipment - as well as her ability to quickly adapt to Earth - I always headcanoned Peridot as being especially young. Like, younger-than-Steven young.

Mostly because Peri’s attitude reeks of Gen Z - also because it’d be nice for a change to have a gem who isn’t thousands of years old like literally every other noteworthy gem in the show. We need a representative of gemkind who hasn’t been around for ages.

Of course, Spinel’s backstory proves that even if they went the boring route and made Peridot thousands of years old just like everybody else, it wouldn’t really mean much of anything. She’d be no less of a valid romantic option for Steven regardless of age.

Spinel is several thousands of years old, and the movie explicitly shows us what exactly that amounts to for a gem.

As I mentioned earlier, Sugar sees the gems more like AI. Spinel remaining in one spot for several millennnia, not moving an inch, not speaking to anyone, not seeing anything other than a gradually-deteriorating garden... yeah, and somehow, despite all that, Spinel’s still very childlike per her design. She had literally no room to mature or accrue life experience: Pink Diamond basically hit the pause button on her entire life.

Even though she’s several thousands of years old, through no fault of her own, Spinel’s mindset remained unchanged. It wasn’t until Steven inadvertently came into her life that she became twisted - understandably so after finally realizing she’d been abandoned by Pink.

But she still didn’t completely lose her true self. Spinel realized on her own that Steven didn’t deserve to suffer just because his mom was a negligent asshole. She also came to understand on her own that unlike Pink, Steven truly cared for her no matter what shit she threw his way.

Steven could give Spinel the care and attention she always deserved; something Pink totally denied her while deceiving her into wasting away with her abandoned playground. He could be the one to give Spinel the love she always deserved but was either denied or manipulated into believing she got.

Honestly, this is more than enough to warrant building something more between these two.

The age gap is irrelevant. The two have chemistry. They aren’t related.

(and honestly, this is fiction - these details are largely irrelevant in fiction anyway. I’m only bringing it up because it doesn’t take much research to find that every label the antis put on Stevinel is complete inaccurate Diamond propaganda bullshit)

Stevinel is FINE. Let people ship it if they want to!

Um... is that good enough?

Honestly, I’m not gonna lie: Stevinel’s pretty goddamned popular; so much that I’m a bit jealous of it. I enjoy the ship a lot, but I’ve been keeping it at arms-length all this time. I’m looking forward to when I can write my own brand of Stevinel interaction when I get to introduce her in my series, but that’s still a while to go.

Also, there’s almost zero Peridot/Spinel material, let alone my Peridot/Steven/Spinel OT3. And Stevidot material is still hard to come by; I’m noticing Stevinel’s still quite a bit easier to find by comparison.

So in a way, I feel many other unpopular ships deserve some tea-spilling sooner than Stevinel because Stevinel at least still has a sizable fanbase. Same can’t really be said for a lot of similar ships here...

A lot of this can apply to other Steven x gem ships, honestly.

But I guess I haven’t been showing Stevinel much proper love due to my devotion to my superior SU-AU. I can only hope I can soon reach a point where I can have GA Spinel react to Steven, since their dynamic will be significantly different.

(and then one day I’ll finally make the Peridot/Steven/Spinel OT3 fic!!)

Until then, I can only hope I did Stevinel some justice here!

#answered asks #ryan-spinel #stevinel #stevidot #steven universe #spinel #su spinel #shipping #spill the tea #peridot #su peridot

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all-or-nothing-baby · 5 years ago

Note

Would love to see you do U with Destiel

Mini-fic prompt-fill. The letter U is "Coming Home".

@avidbkwrm For you, Spencer... here you go, my friend <3

_____________________________

The Last Time

Tags: Dean POV, Modern AU, Drug and Alcohol Misuse, Prostitution, Hurt With Comfort, Angst With A Happy Ending.

_____________________________

Getting back to his shitty apartment afterwards was always the worst part.

It wasn't the peeling wallpaper that bothered Dean. He didn't care that there were only bare floorboards splashed with spilled paint in the bathroom. Couldn’t even give a shit that the wet rot, in the corner above the sofa, was probably the cause of his perpetual cough. And yeah, okay, so he knew the fuck-ton of weed he smoked, on top of the booze, didn’t exactly help. And no, it didn’t exactly make him forget, either. But it did help him to give less of a shit about how shitty he felt.

...until the next time.

Cas was a drug. Dean had known it from the start, had known he shouldn’t get involved. Known he’d end up losing people too, if he did. And he had. But fuck, after that first time? He was hooked. A junkie. Now, he was so far fucking gone it was scary because being with Cas was better than anything Dean had ever had. And whenever Dean wasn’t tangled up in sheets and smiles, all sticky, with him? He was in hell. Especially right afterwards… the instant craving was unbearable. Still tasting his sharp citrusy taste; smelling of bubble gum and baby wipes, just like him; running his rough fingertips over the pink and tender places he'd been claimed. Yeah, Cas was the drug Dean didn’t know how to quit. And Jesus, he didn’t want to, which was worse.

Yet still, at first, he'd swear every visit was the last.

…until the next time.

Dean had lived all over, growing up. Cheap hotels and motels, trailer parks. And worse. Never knew what it was to settle and lay roots. Cas told him he'd been raised the polar opposite: huge family, a single home his whole life. Until his folks had found out he liked dicks not chicks and tried to bible-bash it outta him, quite literally. Cas had left and never contacted them again. And it turned out, being where he was now was better than being on the streets.

Really don't know why I'm telling you all this, he'd said to Dean after only the second time. Maybe it's just those kind eyes? he'd smiled. But I'm sorry, you're not paying to hear about my screwed-up life in a sob-story… want me to fuck you now, baby?

Dean had never gone with a sex worker before. Hated the idea—not for him, exactly, but for them. The idea that some people thought they were worth so little that they'd sell themselves? It horrified him. But walking out that bar that night and seeing that dark, unruly hair and those blue, blue eyes heading straight for him, coming for him...

Hey, beautiful, wanna spend the night with an angel?

No such thing, Dean had tried. But it had come out as a question, a challenge. An almost prove me wrong, please—and with a smile he couldn't have helped if he'd tried.

The man—dressed in a long coat, black boots and tight jeans; the crispest of white shirts with a low slung tie; and an eight o'clock shadow Dean instantly craved to leave a tingle on his inside thighs—had smiled back and said, that's your problem, beautiful. You have no faith.

By the time Dean had left the No-Tell room later that night—left Jimmy, as he'd called himself back then—Dean was born again. His belief suddenly so strong, he'd gone back to his apartment and goddammit he'd prayed.

But for the days that followed, the guilt was overwhelming. Dean had hoped beyond hope he'd be strong enough to stay away from the stranger he now wanted to help; to take away from this dangerous life, this mess Jimmy had gotten himself into... No. Dean told himself he wouldn't go back. It was wrong, on so many levels. Shit, he didn't even know the guy from Adam and yet, what, he wanted to save him?

Dean actually did actually managed to keep his distance, for a time. For a little while, he thought sense had won out.

...until the next time.

After that, Dean became fucking devout. Being with Jimmy—with Cas—very quickly became more than a one-sided thing… it became about not just fucking, but enjoying each other. Them tasting and devouring each other. Holding out for one another. Worshipping each other. Had the tables now turned? Was Cas really the angel he'd said he was and Dean, the sinner who needed saving? For the two hours a week that Dean could barely afford, Dean was happy. They'd often spend time just talking, tracing patterns on the others skin. As contradictory and ironic as it was, being with Cas? It honest to God felt holy. Dean was a better man when with him. Wanted to do better because of him. Felt more himself than he ever had before. And soon, inevitably, every time he'd leave Cas, it was ten times harder than the last.

...until the next time.

The night Dean saw the bruises was the night he'd started thinking seriously about it.

Doesn't usually happen, Cas had promised. Like it was nothing. Dean called bullshit, his voice tinged with anger. But he was mostly completely fucking heartbroken. He felt helpless. Dean had kissed each purpling mark with gentle lips and stroked that untamable hair for over his allotted time slot. Paid the extra. Told Cas dumb jokes that Cas laughed at regardless. They watched some TV together on Dean's phone, tied up like a pretzel.

Turned out Cas had... refused to fulfill some specific act and the disgruntled john had complained to Cas' twisted pimp, Naomi, who'd then set her muscle on him. They were supposed to just scare me a little—well, a lot, Cas had smiled sadly. Maybe swirlie me or choke me out, you know? They weren't supposed to beat him. To mark him. He'd admitted, the clients don't like that—well, most of them, anyways. Some were sicker fucks than others. After ten months, Dean knew that by now.

Soon after, Dean had started working longer shifts at the restaurant, always asking for overtime. It meant they sometimes couldn't meet, or maybe only had an hour together instead of two, what with Cas' workload being not exactly flexible. It was tough. And maybe not just on Dean? Cas almost seemed disappointed whenever Dean told him he wouldn't be seeing him as usual. Or maybe that was just wishful thinking on Dean's part. He'd thought they'd had a connection but... Dean didn't have the words to ask. So he'd just hoped Cas understood. He seemed to, mostly. But sometimes, he'd get that look in those baby-blues. The one that said, you've lost faith in me Dean. And, at one point, Dean worried this just couldn't work. That maybe he'd lost what little faith he had in himself. That Cas probably had no faith in Dean to begin with.

...until the next time.

Dean wasn't sure if it had been a slip. An accidental admission. He'd been so close, so many times, to uttering the words himself. But he'd never imagined Cas letting his guard down in that way. And honestly? Dean had stopped allowing himself to think about the possibility of it being a reality at all.

I love you Dean, Cas had whispered in a breath. And then Dean found that he couldn't breathe at all, the air in his lungs leaving in a rush. Time stopped and for a moment everything was the way it should be. Just them and this…. and then Dean realised, Cas probably just needed the money. Wanted Dean to start coming back more regularly because he always paid well. Dean treated Cas well, too. And what if the other clients were rougher, meaner? Yeah, these things. Dean knew they were the real reason Cas had said what he'd said. Not some accidental slip.

But it didn't really matter, not to Dean. He'd already made up his mind. So, he'd said nothing. Pretended he hadn't heard.

...until the next time.

Dean packed up the few things he owned. Left all the crappy furniture he'd accumulated in the equally crappy apartment he hated, got in his car and didn't look back.

They made love, because he knew it would probably be the last time. Dean savoured every second with Cas. Hoped his long licks and trembling bites, soft moans and desperate squeezes told Cas everything Dean knew he still had to say, so he wouldn't have to… but, as astute as his angel in a trench coat was, Cas couldn't read minds.

So, Dean dressed. Then, chewing at his bottom lip, emptied the bag he'd brought with him onto the bed. Cas' eyes blew wide at the sight of all the bills that spilled from Dean's largest duffle.

I can't do this, Cas, he blurted. Can't let my decisions be controlled by some high and mighty less-than-human asshole anymore. So I'm... leaving. And I ain't comin' back... and he only stopped to take a breath, steal his courage, because there was more to the speech he'd planned—but Cas cut him off there.

It's okay, I was waiting for this. Knew it was probably coming, Cas said flatly. Then he spat, but, Dean, do you really think I want your fucking money? God, I was so foolish to think that maybe you... Just, please leave, Dean. Leave and let me keep the ounce of dignity I'm managing to hang on to. Cas turned away from Dean now. Wouldn't let him see those pretty blue eyes.

Then Dean said it. Cas, I want you to come with me. Don't know where, but I wanna get you outta this.

Dean knew he had to do more. Say more. Cas needed the words neither had really spoken; had rarely been said to either of them. Hell, Dean needed to say them just as much.

Not able to look directly at the man who meant everything to him—too scared, too cowardly—Dean said, I love you, Cas. Like nothing else. And I know you only said it to me 'cause you thought you had to... but it's okay. I don't mind that you don't. I just wanna… I gotta help you be safe, man. Away from here. Please let me. Then you can go wherever you like, do whatever you wanna and I'll—

A small sob cut Dean's speech short. He looked up at Cas as, terrified his words had maybe had the opposite effect. But Cas flew at Dean, threw arms around Dean's neck and held onto him, speaking quiet yes, yes, yeses, into the shoulder of Dean's leather jacket.

They left via the fire escape.

...it was the last time.

Dean drove them into and through the night, Cas gripping his free hand tightly, not letting go. Not even once.

After two more days on the road, when they were about to leave the state, Dean asked Cas, where to?

Cas said, take me home.

Unsure of what it meant but sure about this—about them—Dean asked, where is home, sweetheart? because he knew he'd do whatever it took to be with this man.

Cas looked out of the window for a moment and smiled. Then, laughing gently, he looked back at Dean and told him, anywhere you take me, baby.

#destiel #destiel fic #deancas #deancas fic #modern au #tw: mentions of drug misuse #tw: alcohol #tw: prostitution #hurt with comfort #angst with a happy ending #long post #the last time #my words #lucy's writing #all-or-nothing-writes #all-or-nothing-baby #ask prompt #prompt fill #for my lovely friend

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xxisxxisxxis · 4 years ago

Text

Shining Star | Part Two

[Axl Rose x OC]

Words: 3.1k

Warning(s): Explicit language, mentions of suicide

Tag list: @teller258316 @reigns420 @xpoisonousrosesx @oskea93 @blowinmeupwithherlove @redlipscrystalskies14 @sparxx27 @kaitieskidmore1 @sublimeprincesswasteland

LET ME KNOW IF YOU WANT TO BE TAGGED

"Pretty as a picture." I say to myself, swiping lipstick across my lips in the bathroom mirror before I click the tube shut and make sure my hair looks good.

My stomach churns at the thought of seeing Tommy...and Vince.

I haven't spoken a word to Vince since he got Tami pregnant a year and a half ago, and I haven't spoken to Tommy since he leapt out of my bedroom window after 3 minutes of awkward sex.

"Do you fuck all of your friends?" My mother's words come back to bite me in the ass as I groan out in frustration.

The only plus to any of this is that I'll get to hang out with Viv.

There. Viv. Just focus on Vivian.

I leave the bathroom and glance around to see if I see any familiar faces.

Nope.

I pull the skirt of my dress down a little and rub my lips together, people passing left and right, looking either too drunk to be bothered or too busy.

"Tansy?" I hear a confused voice and look straight ahead, seeing Vivian by the payphone.

"Hey!" I reply excitedly, rushing to her as fast as I can, being careful not to trip over my feet adorned in red heels.

Vivian Sixx—Kinston at that point—had a ballet scholarship to Juilliard, never missed a Sunday church service, and was one of those annoyingly gorgeous girls that genuinely thought they were ugly. She couldn't stand her red hair because she was teased in middle school and called "firecrotch," she hated her freckles and her height because she'd been compared to a giraffe--"tall as shit with brown spots"--and the fact her mom was a batshit crazy Jesus lunatic never helped matters…but that stuff was all in her head because after middle school, guys looked at her differently, Jesus-lover and all. She saw annoying traits, but most people saw legs a mile long, a unique hair color that stood out in the sea of bleach blonde, freckles that framed emerald green eyes, and a heart as kind and beautiful inside as she was on the outside.

She's always said I was the most gorgeous woman she'd ever met, but she is, to me, the most stunning.

She didn't have to try to get anybody's attention, she walked in a room and she had it--so much so that Matt Sorum called her "Fire Woman" after The Cult song because he claimed that's the first thing that came to mind when he first saw her walking back stage at his first gig with Guns N' Roses. "She could give me the fucking clap and I'd kiss her feet for it." He told me, his facial expression mimicking someone who'd been struck by lightening twice…

People always looked at her like that but she rarely noticed because she'd be too busy looking up at Nikki with utter hearts in her eyes, but we'll get into that later.

"What are you doing here?" She asks me curiously.

"Vince called me and wanted me to come." I explain and she raises her brows.

"Vince?" She asks and I nod. "The same Vince that cheated on you multiple times Freshman year? And your entire relationship?"

"It's been, what, four years?" I ask, in reference to how long it's been since he and I started dating. "Maybe he's grown up a little." I suggest and she just clears her throat, cueing the hollering of an angry girl.

"Fuck you! Piece of shit! Motherfucker!" She shouts, the sound of her hitting Vince gets louder and she stomps down the hall as he follows after her, continuously trying to get her attention by saying "babe" repeatedly.

"My pants! Babe!" He's fully in sight now as she stomps off...and he's fully naked.

"Fuck you!" She calls back to him, leaving him behind.

"I fucking love those pants." He whines, disappointed, cupping his dick.

"Your swimsuit parts are out." Vivian tells him, and he and I make contact over her shoulder, my nerves tensing up anxiously as he looks at me with a grin.

"Hey, Tans." He says to me, about to come closer but Vivian stops him.

"Go put some clothes on." She orders to him and he rolls his eyes, turning and walking away, his butt shining as he leaves. "You had sex with that." She reminds me and I frown slightly.

"Yeah, he hasn't changed a bit has he?" I ask her and she shakes her head a little.

"He's gotten worse." She states. "Alright, c'mon, let's go see Tommy." She takes my hand and leads me to where he is, my heart nearly beating out of my chest.

How awkward is this going to be?

We turn the corner and see him and two other guys standing in their street clothes, and when Tommy sees me, all my nerves dissipate because he completely makes me forget our awkward sex never even happened.

"Tansy fucking Reilen!" He exclaims excitedly as I walk to him to hug him.

He leans down to reach my 5'3" height and wraps his arms tightly around me.

"Hey, Tommy!" I reply, just as happy.

This is the first time he, Vivian, and I, will be hanging out together...Viv's been having to hangout with us separately because we've been avoiding each other for the most part. I guess we don't have to, anymore.

He releases me, immediately turning to the ball of teased, jet black hair.

"This is Nikki," he informs me, "the band's bassist."

Hazel eyes--nearly green--look down at me behind his hair, traveling down my face, to my chest, down my legs, and back up again, the tiniest, mischievous smirk on his lips, and I raise my brow a tiny bit…

Trouble. Trouble. Trouble. Trouble. Is exactly what Nikki was, and it was all he and I could get ourselves into for years to follow.

"And this is Tansy." Tommy tells Nikki, oblivious to how he's looking at me.

"Nice to meet you." I tell Nikki.

"Yeah." He replies.

"And Mick, our guitarist." Tommy says next, nodding to the shorter man who's also got jet black hair.

"Hi." I say to him.

He just gives a small smile and mumbles, "hey."

"He's a little quiet but when you get to know him he opens up." Tommy says to me, quietly as Vince reappears with clothes on. "We were about to head to the rainbow," he starts next, his eyes flickering to Viv. "If someone's willing to stay out late."

"Fine." Vivian doesn't argue, sighing out.

"Hallelujah. Thank fuckin' God." Vince pipes, sliding his arm around my shoulder, making me roll my eyes.

The entire time to the Rainbow, Vivian and Nikki are constantly back and forth, tearing each other new assholes and going for each other's throats. I don't know what beef they have with each other but it's brutal and borderline sex fueled.

Once we get to the bar and grill, I drag Viv to the bathroom with me so I can touch up my makeup.

"So…" I start, looking in the mirror, "...have you lost your virginity yet?"

"No." She says it as if she's slightly offended.

"Oh."

"Why?"

"It's just…" I start but quickly decide that it'll just piss her off, probably. "Nothing."

"Tansy." She sighs, irritated. "What is it?"

"Nothing. I just thought you and that Nikki guy have messed around." I shrug and she looks like she's seen a ghost.

"I—ew why would you think that? We haven't." She insists and I hold my hands up in surrender.

"I'm sorry, I just thought you had." I tell her.

"What makes you think we have?"

"There's a tension." The words are framed by a smirk and she widens her eyes.

"There is not a tension. There is so not a tension." She gets it out without laughing although I can tell she wants to. “We argue. All the time. He thinks I’m a self-righteous prude and I think he’s the spawn of Satan. If there’s a tension, it’s because we hate each other.”

"You don't have to like someone to have sex with them." I inform her, speaking from experience of the guys who've had sex with me without giving a damn, and me having sex with guys I didn't necessarily like just to make them happy. "I really like him for you, though. You get all riled up and firey when he's around."

"Oh, please." She rolls her eyes.

“I just met the guy and I can tell he has you acting different. You used to be so quiet and shy around people you don’t really know, now you’re jumping in to conversations just to piss him off and prove him wrong.”

“Because I don’t like him.” She shakes her head. “And he doesn’t like me. That’s where the tension comes from. See? It’s full-circle.”

"Hate-sex is always an option." I suggest.

"Do not even start." She scolds me, pointing her finger.

"What? It gets rid of all the aggression and ill feelings." I explain.

“So does their shows. Did you know they encourage people to get their feelings out during a show so they go home chilled out and not so uptight?” she tells me and I look at her, not even the slightest bit convinced. “And it works.”

“Yeah, until he gets off stage and then you get all hot and bothered.” I reply with a grin.

“I get hot because he’s Devil-Spawn and the heat from hell radiates off of him and I get bothered because he’s an arrogant idiot.”

“Or you like him and don’t know why you do so you displace your frustration and confusion on to him.” I shoot back. “I was honestly joking about the hate sex okay? I don’t want you to go jump in to bed with him if you don’t want to but you two were fighting like cats and dogs the whole time we were on our way here. I think you should try to let whatever kind of bravery he evokes in you come out in a way that’s not in the form of riled up anger or fiery hatred.” I recommend and she nods a little. “Now, c’mon because I have a slutty blonde waiting.”

That was the night Mötley Crüe was signed to Elektra records by rock-god signing Tom Zutat, who's responsible for record companies grasping ahold of a plethora of leather-patented hair metal douchebags that could make good music and snort their way through long enough power rails of coke that once they reach the end of white powder without flinching, China's on the other side. But you want to know a secret? It was all bullshit. Every person I've met in that rock scene, you know, the ones that despised the term "hair metal" yet teased their hair two feet above their heads and played heavy metal? Yeah, them. Every single one of them had this "I was made for this shit" attitude.

Some of them nearly put bullets through their head, OD'd, hung themselves, turned their cars on and locked themselves in their garage...even the ones that hadn't purposely tried to take themselves out either almost pushed it too far and died accidentally from too much booze or drugs or vehicle accidents, or did push it too far.

They weren't made for it.

Nobody's fucking made for millions of people wanting a piece of them every single night, management running them to their grave for more money, dealers keeping them numb, all their relationships just exploding in their faces, all of their "friends" wanting more and more and more.

They thought they were made for it because when someone gets a taste of what they decide the universe or God or whoever or whatever destined for them to become, they take it and run with it without reading the fine print.

They see the fame without the lack of privacy and hangers-on.

They see the fans without the people who hate their guts and make it known.

They see the money without the gold diggers.

They see the excess without the high risk that comes with taking advantage of having everything with the snap of their fingers.

They see the glutton without the punishment.

Until they're standing on the railing of the balcony of their Hollywood penthouse, their best friend trying to talk them down while the police are on their way.

And then of course when they do turn up dead by suicide, people talk their typical, "how awful, they killed themselves in their mansion, surrounded by their expensive furniture, wearing their expensive clothes, with millions—possibly billions—in their bank account, how sad for them, boohoo."

As someone who's been dirt broke, to the point of getting my water cut off and having to shower at a friend's house, but then growing up to have more money than I knew what to do with aside from blow it on drugs? Money doesn't buy happiness, jerkoffs. It can buy distractions to buffer pain and suffering, sure, but once the high wears off, or that new car loses its luster, or that new house starts to feel fucking empty, all while that wall full of awards and plaques and magazine posters cementing your fame and worth and stake in the industry you sold your soul for just reminds you that you don't even recognize who the hell you are anymore and nothing can change that...you get fucking depressed. Hate to say it. Hate to be the bearer of bad news, that even though you're poor as shit and are depressed as shit that even if you had money and fame you'd still be fucking sad. But I'd rather tell you the truth than sell you the fallacy that me and everybody else I was friends with bought, that landed every single one of us in situations where we felt we had no other way except to just off ourselves all while remembering when we were stupid enough to proudly say: "I was made for this."

People are made for this like Matthew Trippe replaced Nikki Sixx, which—if you want the truth—is complete bullshit.

“He said we could possibly score a five album deal, Viv, why aren’t you happy about this? I thought you wanted us to get signed?” Tommy asks Vivian as she slings her keys across the guys' shitty living room, pissed beyond measure.

“You just told me you were dropping out of school, Tommy! We are so close to graduating, can’t you just wait?!”

“No, I can’t! I can’t just wait because what I wanted is happening and I need to focus on the band right now more than ever!” He argues while motioning to Nikki and Vince, who, like me, are being smart and staying near the door incase we need to get out of sight once Vivian and Tommy kill each other.

“Your education should be your main focus, at least until you graduate! You are so close to being done, Tommy, why can’t you just—“

“Because I don’t give a fuck about school, Vivian! What I am passionate about doesn’t require a diploma, and I’m sorry if me dropping out makes you feel like I’m leaving you behind or whatever the fuck you feel, but I’m not sorry for wanting to focus on my main priority!”

“What I’m hearing is that I wasted hours of my time throughout school trying to tutor you and help you all for you to throw it away on the idea of being some hot-shot rockstar with girls and drugs and booze—”

“Oh, my God, you act like you would have had better things to do with that wasted time!” He sounds like he already knows he's gonna lose the argument while Vivian just rolls her jaw. “And it’s not a fucking idea, it’s fucking reality and you’re only mad because you have no control over it!”

“I’m mad because we talked about this and everything we agreed on, everything we promised each other, is absolute void to you now that it’s actually happening!”

“Shit changes, Viv, people change! What I considered important junior year is completely different than what I consider important now.” He calms down, sighing.

“We agreed we would both graduate high school and I could either put off college or drop out if I needed to...” she trails off, her voice shaking slightly with oncoming tears, making me feel bad for her. “That was our plan to avoid this from happening. To avoid you leaving me behind.” Now it's crystal clear why she's freaking out over them being offered a record deal. “You considered me important junior year when you came up with that plan. When you promised me you wouldn’t go on to bigger things without me and forget me. And now...” She takes a step back, while Tommy attempts to walk to her.

“Viv, I didn’t mean it like that.” He tries to tell her.

“No, you’re right.” she replies, her body shaking a little. “Shit changes.” I raise my brow because I've never heard her curse before. “People change.” She keeps on. “Glad this is happening now, though, so I don’t waste any more time on a completely different page than you, Tommy.” Her voice cracks a little and she grabs her keys quickly.

“Viv—“ Tommy tries to grab her arm as she heads to the door but she snatches away from him. “Fuck you.” she cracks, her voice barely coming out as tears spill over her lashes.

Nikki and Vince step aside to let her leave all while I contemplate following her, but if I know Vivian, I know she likes to think about things when she's upset, rather than just talk them out with someone. Which is the only time she likes to be alone.

She just slams the door on us, and Tommy.

Most definitely wouldn't be the last time she did that.

"Tommy, are you—"

"—I'm goin' home." He grumbles, grabbing his keys, and me and Nikki and Vince all look at each other.

"Tommy, you are home?" Nikki reminds him.

"I'm stayin' with my folks so I can vent to my sister because she's the only one who knows Viv good enough to know she's being fuckin' unreasonable." He states.

"I barely know her and I can tell you she's unreasonable." Nikki scoffs, earning a glare. "Sorry, man." He mumbles in return.

"Bye." Tommy says, closing the door behind him.

"Well...I'm gonna go find a chick to fuck." Vince says, stretching.

"You got one right here." Nikki chuckles looking at me and I raise my brows.

"Not since I knocked Tami up." Vince reads my mind and I nod.

"Exactly." I reply.

"Who?" Nikki asks.

"Nobody. Don't wait up." He tells us, opening the door and leaving, too, more than likely heading to the strip club down the street.

"So, like, how old are you?" Nikki asks.

"Why?"

He just gets a shit eating grin on his lips.

#shining star

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vfenrirsv · 3 years ago

Text

She left her books, her car, her clothes, and a note

But all she wrote was, “Tonight I'm leaving on a train,”

She said she's headed west, to make it right, for one more night

And, well, I don't blame her if she is

They say it isn’t stupid to stay and fight for a relationship, because love is complicated and messy and people are more than just the sum of their quirks and dirty laundry or bad habits. They say it isn’t stupid to put your all into your relationship, to go all in, to open your heart and love with all of it; knowing that you might get hurt as well. They say there is no limit to love, that there is no mountain high enough or river deep enough…but I guess love only truly lives in song and sonnet, because if love were real then wouldn’t you be in as much pain as I am?

Wouldn’t you be suffering under the knowledge that the person you swore to love with all of yourself for the rest of your life didn’t even act like they want you anymore?

But he thinks it's just one more sunset

And after all, it's her fault if she hasn't caught on yet

So why'd you have to go?

Would you even miss me if I were gone? Would you walk the halls and cry for me? Would you stay awake at night and look to the stars, wondering where I was and how things could have gotten so twisted and turned around? Would you even notice that I wasn’t there? Would something in your soul feel missing or dark? Would you run down the drive and look for me the morning after you realized that I wasn’t coming back? Would you scream and demand that the heavens answer your question of why, why, why?

Or would you sit in front of your television or play on your phone, and mutinously stew in your own silence? Would you go to work every day, nary a disturbance to your life of work-grocery-home-shit-shower-sleep-repeat, going on and on like every other day? Would you look around and continue to ‘have nothing to say?’ Would you even look around at all?

Is there something I could say to make you turn around?

Cause nights like these I wish I'd said don't go

Is there anybody there?

Can anybody help to get me out of here?

'Cause you're walking down a road that I can't go

I’m already gone, even if I’m still here. I battle with myself about how much more to bend or struggle or argue. When we argue I am the one spilling my guts, crying and emoting and being rung dry while you sit in silence with a quick joke or flirty comment. “You’re so pretty.” You say it’s to make me feel better, but all it does is chip away at what little of my feelings I have left. Do you even care? Have you even realized that I’m leaving, that I’m out the door, that I’m disappearing right in front of you? I’m disappearing from this life, this relationship, from the friendship I thought we had, inch by inch by painful fucking inch.

Have you even realized that I’ve stopped arguing with you, stopped asking you to talk to me; have you noticed yet that I’ve simply stopped?

Is there anybody there?

Can anybody help to get me out of here?

'Cause you're walking down a road that I can't go

If you were fighting for this relationship, if you were determined to stitch it back together; failures and all, would you argue with me more? Would you get overwhelmed and angry and loud? Would you throw things or slam doors? Would you demand answers and dedication and a second, or third, or tenth chance? Would you get desperate and panic, thinking that everything was your fault, like I do? Would you turn your mind over and over, trying to find a solution to problems that you know aren’t even fixable anymore? Would you lose sleep like I do? Would you forget to take care of yourself? Would you get sick to your stomach like I do?

Would you dread the thought that you’ve become a complete and utter failure, like I do?

Try as I might, I just can't handle this

I lost myself inside a drunken kiss, and I

All that I wanted was to walk you home

Save a sad song for the sing-along

Would you even recognize rejection anymore?

When I say “You haven’t kissed me today,” and you kiss me on the cheek, do you even understand how sad that makes me; how utterly low it brings me? Instead of dragging me close and laying claim to my lips and stealing the breath from my lungs, you skim my cheek for a millisecond before pulling away. If my love language were affection, you’d be speaking loud and clear. It doesn’t matter that you follow it up with a peck on the lips. “I’m just not good enough for you anymore, am I?” you ask. Truthfully? No, I don’t think so anymore. I am not going to apologize for outgrowing a relationship or a person who had the option to grow with me but stubbornly refused to.

When I tell you “I need you,” and throw myself at you, change my clothes and my under things and my actions, when I come on to you and give you every opportunity to have me in the way that a man wants a woman; you smile at me, call me cute, and feed me an excuse. Do you know how that makes me feel? To know that the only man I want to crave couldn’t care less for a taste of me? Have you even realized that I’ve stopped propositioning you? Your excuses taste like ash in my mouth and sound like static in my ears.

Do you even know the last time you touched me? No? I do. I am intimately familiar with all of the times you’ve left me wanting.

In sixteen days it will be a year. A fucking year. 12 months. 52 weeks. 365 days. 8,760 hours. 525,600 minutes. 31,536,000 seconds, each an opportunity denied. Do you have any idea how the fuck that makes me feel? Do you even fucking care what you’ve done by doing nothing? Are you even aware of the neglect that I feel? That is YOUR fault. I am livid. I have spent money needlessly on lingerie and waxing and short dresses and makeup and have watched more than my fair share of tasteless x-rated cinema to get ideas on how to fucking please you and for what? FOR WHAT? For. Absolutely. Nothing. A fucking year? Are you fucking serious?!

We’ve been married a year and four months, and it seems like I don’t mean anything to you at all.

Oh excuse me, my bad, I pay my share of the bills – so I guess I’m good for something.

And what she'd give for one more smile

And how she hoped he missed her

'Cause, God, she missed how he would kiss her

You know, I lay awake at night and I wonder; would we have been better if we had waited to get married – would we even be married at all? If we had catered to everyone else’s needs, delayed everything, if I had been witness to all of this earlier, would I have been able to foresee how much you don’t respond to me anymore? If I had slowed down and kept a part of my heart to myself, would I be better off? If I had stayed with my job up north, would things have progressed as they have? If I put my foot down about moving down here, was more vocal against moving into this oversized house, more resistant about sacrificing my preferences and wants; would anything be different?

If I didn’t love you as much as I do, would I be better off? If I didn’t believe that sometimes love isn’t enough, would we be better than we are now? What if, what if, what if…

So why'd you have to go?

Is there something I could say to make you turn around?

'Cause nights like these I wish I'd said don't go

Is there anybody there?

Can anybody help to get me out of here?

'Cause you're walking down a road that I can't go

Who have I even become in this relationship? I can’t stand the person that I have become, and if I don’t love myself anymore how in the world can I expect you to? I’ve stopped taking care of myself, and I’ve stopped taking care of you – but jesuseverlovingchrist it isn’t my responsibility to take care of you. I am not your mother, your maid, or even your mistress. You refuse to take care of yourself? Fine. Then don’t.

And if you won’t love me, then I will just have to love myself instead.

I used to be vivacious, exciting, and adventurous. I would go out to drink and flirt on New Year’s Eve. I’d kiss a stranger, and have fun doing it! I’d dress and make myself up just to turn someone’s head, to catch someone’s eye, to feel coveted. I would pack a bag and go hiking or camping on a whim. I’d get on the back of a stranger’s motorcycle and hold them close and feel the thrill of speed and power beneath me on the highway. I’d swim naked in the sea and sleep in my car on three-day weekends. I’d stay up past midnight to watch the stars disappear and the sun rise over the ocean. I’d make friends of friends, chat up strangers in coffee shops and bookstores. I used to try things for the sake of trying them. There was always the thrill of the unknown.

Now? I stay at home, holed up in a bedroom with paint on the walls and carpet on the floor that I can’t stand. I fucking hatehatehate the color. Who thought that beige-everything was a good idea? I spend all my time reading books and avoiding the world. I can’t even live well in the shadow of my unhappiness. I just eat, and eat, and eat and grow fat and sick of the shade that I cast. I can’t do this anymore.

I’m leaving, and even if you tried to stop me, I don’t know that I’d even believe that you meant it.

'Cause you're walking down a road that I can't go

Yeah, you're walking down a road that I can't go

You're walking down a road that I can't…

Disappearing By Inches, by Vann Fenrirs Volchitsa

Champagnes For Celebrating, by Mayday Parade

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bellemorte180 · 5 years ago

Text

Degas

Caroline Forbes had her life mapped out. She was not about the let anything stand in her way; including the unexpected appearance of her soulmate. The fact that he is her professor, might make this a bit complicated.

Written for Klaroline week, Day 7-Trope x Trope- Soulmates mixed with Professor/Student

Thank you @klaroline-events

The thing about soulmates was the fact that were rare. The words were written on the forearm of every person but that never meant that anyone would actually hear those words spoken by their soulmate. It was more common than not that the words were never uttered. Someone could hear their soulmate speak for years but if the words were not directly spoken to the person who had them inked on their skin; the soulmates would never connect.

It was rare for someone’s words to be spoken and Caroline was not about to put her life on hold for a daydream that most likely would never happen. At first in her early teens, she swore up and down that she would find him. Then she dated Damon during her sophomore of high school and vowed to never again arrange her life for a man. It was not Caroline’s fault that Damon did find his soulmate but that she died so soon after their meeting. Although, he did try and live his life after the loss of her but Caroline never measured up to Damon’s version of perfection. He called her shallow and useless. Stating that Caroline could never possibly get into a university such as Duke. So, out of spite Caroline worked her ass off and did just that and on a full ride.

While Damon was never physically abusive, he could never stop comparing her to the ghost of Katherine Pierce.

“Caroline, are you coming?” Bonnie, Caroline’s roommate, asked. Bonnie and Caroline met during freshman year of college and have been friend’s ever since. Years later, the two still lived together through ups and downs, boyfriends and breakups. “Earth to Caroline.”

“Almost finished.”

“Care, you’ve proof read your thesis outline a thousand times. I’m sure it is perfect.” Caroline turned to glare at her best friend. This was the thesis for her master’s degree, it had to be more than perfect. There could be not even the hint of a flaw, especially if it would help her get into Duke’s doctoral program for art history. “Besides, if you don’t go now, you’ll be late for class.”

Caroline looked at the clock on her phone and jumped up.

“Shit! Bonnie! Why didn’t you tell me earlier?” She hissed out as she put the pair of small black go-to boots on her feet. She quickly pulled her hair back into a messy bun. Her jeans and tank-top would have to do. She grabbed a matching black hoodie in case the lecture hall was cold and seeing that Caroline thought seventy-degree weather was freezing, she knew it would be. That and it was common practice for people to keep their words covered and Caroline had no time to search for her arm band.

“I tried but you were in that ‘Caroline study trance’ you get when you’re super focused, it took a minute to get your attention.” Bonnie said, watching her friend rush around in amusement. “I am covering Professor Fleming’s class today and need to leave so I figured I’d pull you from it now before you miss class completely. I’ve heard how Dr. Mikaelson is about attendance.”

“Not only that but he runs the doctoral program. I cannot be late for this class.” Dr. Niklaus Mikaelson’s classes were hard to get into. Caroline never managed it during her under grad and now that she was in her second to last semester before completing her master’s, she was finally able to land one of his classes. “I need him to like me.”

“It’s because he is hot? Isn’t it?”

“Bonnie!”

“What? He is. And that accent…”

Dr. Mikaelson was a prodigy in the art world. Caroline did an extensive google search of him when she was deciding if she wanted to pursue her masters at Duke or move onto another university. It was his work that kept Caroline there. He graduated secondary school by the age of fifteen and got a full ride to Oxford-completing his bachelors degree in just under two years. From there he achieved a masters and doctoral degree before moving to work at the Louvre all by the age of twenty-seven. The last few years saw him teaching at Duke and taking over the entire art history department in the process; and he was only thirty-three.

“His attractiveness is not what I need him for.” Caroline stated as she ran down the hall of the apartment. “Dinner later?”

“I have papers to grade. Remember? Joys of being a TA.”

“Right. See you tomorrow then. Bye!” Caroline replied as she grabbed her bag and left the apartment. She all but frantically drove towards the campus. Once parked she had to run towards the lecture hall and she made in it enough time to take her seat before the Professor strolled in and began his lecture. He opened a PowerPoint that showed a famous painting of ballerinas dancing on a stage, appearing as though they were in the middle of preparing for a performance.

“Edgar Degas. He is claimed to be one of the founding fathers of impressionism. However, as many of you know it is claimed that he hated that title. He preferred to be called a realist.” Dr. Mikaelson pointed to the painting on the screen. “Ballet Rehearsal on Stage is a prime example of his reasoning. The painting does not follow the typical style of impressionism painting. It lacks the color and the technique used is far different. It is far darker…”

Caroline leaned forward, engaged in his voice. There was something comforting in how he spoke, and it was not just the English accent. She could see the passion he had for the art he taught and his love for the painting. While his biography on the school website and what she found through her various digging, there was little to go on about his personal life. While Caroline agreed with Bonnie that the man was very attractive, Caroline was more interested in his work and how it could possibly help her get her foot in the right direction. It was only the second week of classes but Caroline knew she needed to make an impression sooner rather than later if she was going to get into the doctoral program next year.

He went on and on about impressionism, Degas and those ballerinas on the screen. Caroline took notes, switching from highlighter to highlighter and using her post-it note system that used to drive Bonnie insane. She jotted down her questions, points and theories she might need for a paper later on in the semester. She was tempted to click at her pen but knew, after years of dirty looks, that most would not appreciate such an action in the middle of a class.

“It is said that Degas fascination with painting the ballerinas were because he viewed that as the perfect example of the human condition. Towards the end of his life he made comments about the limbs of the dancers and how they moved. How they became one with the music and that is what he was trying to capture.” Dr. Mikaelson leaned against the desk and looked at this class. “Now, most of you are at the point in your studies where you have developed you own opinions on an artist work and what is art without interpretation? Any thoughts?”

Caroline among a few other students raised their hands. Dr. Mikaelson chose a young girl by the name of April that Caroline recognized from a couple classes she had with her previously. April, while bright, always seemed a bit shy.

“I always thought that the ballerinas were beautiful but in an artificial way. That they showed what the ideal beauty was during the late 19th century in France.” April smiled. “Kind of like in today's society, we are bombarded with what we should look like. The dancer always reminded me of that ideal.”

“It is true that young woman during that time were pressed to act in a certain way.” He replied, pointing at the screen again. “Dancers especially were encouraged to dance not for themselves but for the pleasure of men. It was not uncommon for the dancers to become lovers of wealthy gentleman and they did so in order to keep their place in the ballet before they came to an age that was deemed no longer desirable for the ballet. While Degas was a talented painter, he was also a man. Perhaps he painted the ballerinas for the simple fact that he admired their beauty.” He looked around and saw the students writing. “Anyone else?”

Caroline raised her hand again and this time, Dr. Mikaelson pointed to her. While she had attended every class they had thus far, which was only three since it was only the second week of classes, this was the first time he picked her. She admired how he tried to choose a different student every class and how he liked to keep the students engaged in the lesson.

“Honestly? There is something eerie about it.” She saw him freeze but Caroline pressed on. “The use of the shading and the dark colors make me feel as though he was always on the outside looking in. Like, his obsession with the dancers was far darker than we realize. He was a grown man who watched young girls dance and painted pictures of them. It is kind off-putting once you think about it. Almost predatory.”

Dr. Mikaelson did not move. He was looking at her as though he had seen a ghost of a long lost loved one. She was not the only one who seemed to have notice his hesitation but quickly enough, he seemed to shake himself of his thoughts.

“That certainly is an interesting perspective and not uncommon.”

And then, she felt it. She felt the slight burn on her left forearm. Her eyes grew wide and she felt as though she could not breathe. Dr. Mikaelson turned away from her and called on another student but Caroline could not look away from him. She did not understand how he was able to go on teaching when both their lives were just turned upside down. Everything changed and yet not a single person in that class realized what just happened.

He listened as one student droned on and on about Degas, and in truth, Caroline could not even focus on what was being discussed. She just watched as he moved around the podium that was perched in the front of the class. She noticed how his fingers seemed to trace over something and then his eyes searched the class again. He was looking at the seating chart they filled out on the first day.

He was looking for her name.

“All valid opinions, then again. Are not most opinions valid? Well, almost all.” He stated, cutting the student off. There was a slight chuckle echoing through the class. “We can all agree that there are many different interpretations of Degas’s work and that brings us to the major assignment of this class. If you read the syllabus, which I am sure you have, you know that you each will be required to pick an artist and study their style of painting, sculpting or whatever their choice of expression was. I want more than a biography and a regurgitation on their methods. I want your opinion. I want to know what your honest opinion of their work. I want to know how it makes you feel and what you believe drove the artist. Dig deep inside and find that inner artist yourself. Basically, I want you to woo me.” That caused another round of chuckles and Caroline could not help but notice how his eyes flickered to me. “The paper is to be submitted a week before the end of the semester. For further instructions, look at the syllabus or contact me during office hours. Dismissed.”

The students around her began to gather their belongings but Caroline was unsure on what to do next. Did she gather her textbooks and hurry of the lecture hall? Did she hang around trying to get a word? She noticed that if she did not move soon, she would be left sitting there and that would just be odd, so she began to gather her things and walk down the steps. She looked down and noticed that he was speaking with April and by her flushed cheeks, it was obvious that April had a crush. Caroline could not explain the rush of possessiveness she felt but she did not like the idea of anyone else having feelings for her soulmate.

“Ms. Forbes?” Caroline paused at the bottom the steps near the front row of the class, he had been watching her; waiting for her. “May I have a word?”

“Of course.” Caroline replied and waited as April walked past them, giving Caroline a small wave as she went. Caroline, however, was only able to give her a tight smile. Once the smaller woman was out of the room, Caroline felt as though all the air was sucked out with her. “Dr. Mikaelson.”

“Klaus.”

“What?”

“Call me Klaus. I believe you have the right to do that.” Dr. Mikaelson, Klaus, was smirking at her. He was gazing at her in a way that made her feel as though she was being studied; paying attention to her as he would one of Degas’s paintings.

“Klaus. Right. Short for Niklaus.”

“It is.” He moved his right arm over to his left and began unclasping the cuff-link. He rolled the sleeve of his white button-down dress shirt to reveal his forearm. There upon his skin were her words written in black ink…. spanning down a good portion of his arm. Caroline felt her cheeks flush in embarrassment but he only seemed amused. “I wondered for a long time about the woman who would have such an opinion on grown men drawing pictures of dancers. I never expected her to be in one my classes. Or about Degas.”

“You know, I wanted nothing more last year than to be in one of your classes but they were always filled. I never expected you to be my soulmate. In fact, I never expected to find my soulmate at all. And yet here you are, someone whose work I admire and had hoped to pursue my doctorate under…and oh my god.”

“Caroline?”

“You run the doctoral program here for the art department.” Caroline began to feel her chest contract and her breathing to become uneven. “I’ll have to leave this class; I won’t be able to pursue my degree here. It’s too late to transfer now. I am set to get my masters next semester!” She started pacing back and forth, feeling as though everything was crumbling around her. “Everything I worked for will go out the window.”

Klaus slowly made his way towards her, as though he was approaching a lion who was about to strike. He placed his hands on her shoulders and despite the hooded sweatshirt she wore, she could feel the heat of his touch through the fabric.

“Caroline, look at me.” Her breathing was still going rapid but she followed his direction. “You will not have to give up your dreams. I will not allow you to give up now, okay?” Caroline nodded. “Now breath. Slowly. In and out.” It took a few minutes but she began to feel herself calm down. Klaus drew small circles on her the sides of her arms and she focused on that feeling his touch invoked. “Are you feeling better?”

“Yes. Thank you. Sorry.”

“Don’t be.” Klaus paused before speaking again. “Do those happen often?” She looked at him confused. “The panic attacks?”

“What? No. Sorry.” Caroline replied, blushing bright red again. “I’m so embarrassed. I was just so nervous and then realizing that this would be a major issue if I continued studying here. I mean, you’re my soulmate. If that isn’t crossing that line.” Klaus just started to laugh at her lightly. “Oh, come on! You know what line I’m talking about. You know the cheesy stereotype of the professor getting involved with his student!” At this point Klaus was full on laughing at her and despite the panic attack she had earlier, hearing his laughter calmed her frayed nerves. “I’m serious! This is serious! And you’re laughing! And I’m rambling on and on…. ugh, I do that when I’m nervous. Clearly.”

“Good to know.” Klaus was still smiling at her while Caroline found it hard to look at him without embarrassment coursing through her. “I won’t lie to you and say that there will not be road blocks in our path. I am your teacher, that is true and it is most definitely something we have to consider. However,” Klaus reached down and picked up her left hand. He pushed up the sleeve of her sweatshirt to reveal his words on her skin “finding one soulmate is rare. I spent the majority of my life curious as to who you would be. I’m not about to let that chance go now.”

The feel of his skin connecting with hers sent chills shooting through her entire body. Their eyes locked and she lost herself in the bight blue orbs. She could see excitement, uncertainty and vulnerability coursing through them. Caroline found herself wanting nothing more than to crawl inside of him. The feeling of his touch went beyond anything sexual, although the attraction was there, but it was more intimate than anything she experienced before.

“I don’t think I could let go now if I tried.” Caroline whispered and Klaus smiled widely. His smile was breathtaking and Caroline though it was unfair how beautiful he was. His dimples along made her heart flutter. She had always thought he was attractive but she was so focused on his work that she never bothered to think about the man behind the work.

And now she could think of nothing else.

Klaus dropped her wrist when other students began filing in. He went to the desk, unplugged his laptop from the USB cord and closed it, not bothering to turn it off first. He picked up his briefcase, shoving the laptop inside and motion toward the door. The next class would be starting soon and neither one of them needed an audience. They left the lecture hall together but Caroline noticed that he was keeping a respectable distance. She was unsure if she should be grateful or hurt. She knew that even though everything changed for them, the world still spun around the sun and he was still her teacher. The rules did not end with her life taking a drastic but joyful turn.

“Have dinner with me. Tonight.” Klaus stated. He paused in the middle of the courtyard just outside the lecture hall, not caring that it was a Tuesday afternoon or that they both had places to be the next day. He turned to look at her with a warm smile. “I would say let us just take the afternoon to know one another but I unfortunately have another class; and as you pointed out, I head of the doctoral program and have students to advise.”

“Okay.” Caroline nodded. While she was disappointed that she had to say goodbye, she was partly relieved. She realized, as the North Carolina sun beat down on her that she met her soulmate in an over sized sweatshirt, jeans and had her hair thrown up in a messy bun. She looked like the typically college student and that was embarrassing. “I don’t have plans tonight, unless you count obsessively studying and working on my thesis. Which, I honestly feel is coming along great but it more difficult than I anticipated. Not that I thought it would be easy, and you’re laughing at me again.”

Klaus couldn’t help himself but smile and shake his head.

“You’re rambling.” His tone was soft and full of affection, which made her only laugh alongside him. “You have no reason to be nervous with me. I promise.”

“Okay. Right. Dinner.” Caroline pulled a notebook out of her bag and ripped a piece of paper out of it. She grabbed her pen and jotted down her phone number and address. “Here is my address. Pick me up at seven. I love pizza and all things Italian. The spicier the food, the better.”

“Good to know.” Klaus smiled that devastating smile again, making Caroline’s skin heat up. She swore it was from the sun; not his stupid smile. She could see that he wanted to lean in and kiss her or simply touch her again; but in the middle of Duke’s courtyard was not the time or place. “I’ll see you tonight Caroline.”

With that, Klaus turned from her and Caroline watched him stroll across campus. There was something pleasing about the way he walked. It took her a moment but she noticed that the sleeve of his button-down was still rolled up to his elbow; letting the words out for the world to see. She couldn’t explain it but Caroline felt proud that those where her words on his skin.

Realizing that she was standing in the middle of a college campus, ogling her professor (who happened to be her soulmate), Caroline pulled herself from her stupor and moved off into the opposite direction. She had another class in about thirty minutes but she knew that she was not going to be able to focus for the rest of the day. While she was not typically one to blow off her classes, she would make an exception just this once and ensure that she studied extra hard over the weekend to make up for it.

As she walked to her car, Caroline dug out her phone and dialed Bonnie. She knew that Bonnie’s class that she taught for Professor Fleming sometimes would be over and that she most likely was in her office; either meeting with a student or grading Fleming’s papers. While Bonnie enjoyed being a TA, Professor Fleming had a tendency to push all her work on her TA’s. It as free labor and Isobel Fleming certainly took advantage of that.

“Come on Bonnie. Pick up.” It rang a few times before clicking to voicemail. Caroline huffed in frustration as she heard her best friend’s voicemail kick on. “Call me immediately. I have a friend emergency. Like life changing emergency.”

It wasn’t until Caroline was home and staring at her closet in abject horror; realizing that she had nothing to wear that screamed, you won’t regret being my soulmate, that Bonnie’s name flashed up on Caroline’s phone.

“Thank god Bonnie. I need you.”

“Sorry. I was helping a student. A completely useless student but a student nonetheless. I totally get why Fleming hates actually doing her office hours.” Bonnie stated. “What’s up?” “I met my soulmate.”

“What?! Seriously! Oh god that’s….Caroline!”

“I know!” Caroline screeched his excitement. “We’re doing dinner tonight and I literally have nothing to wear. I met him in that black hoodie I wear pretty much to hide my bloating during my period. It was embarrassing and I need something spectacular. Please, help me.”

“Hold on.” She heard a rustle and Bonnie speaking in the background to someone. Caroline, in the meantime, picked up a red dress that she wore for special occasions that she was sure she was going to get laid, but decided that it was a bit much for a first date. Maybe the second date. “Okay, Luka is going to take Fleming’s evening class and I’ll grade my papers at home after you leave. Now, you go shower, shave and do all of that. I’ll meet you at home in about thirty minutes to help you get ready.” Caroline smiled widely and expressed her thanks. “What time is he picking you up?”

“Seven.”

“Okay. That gives us four hours to make you look drop dead hot. Now go shower, I’ll be there soon.” Bonnie hung up and Caroline plugged her phone in by the bed before running to the shower. She turned on the shower and took a good look at her legs. She winced slightly at the neglect and grabbed a brand-new razor. By the time she was done in the shower and had herself wrapped in nothing more than a robe with a towel on her head, Bonnie was in her bedroom throwing her entire closet around the room. “Your phone has a message. Unknown number…”

Caroline dived for her phone and pulled it off the charger. She gave a smile as she read the message.

[Klaus][3:42 pm]:I made reservation s at La Rustica. Fire roasted pizza?

[Caroline][4:03 pm]: That sounds perfect.

[Caroline][4:03 pm]: I can’t wait.

[Klaus][4:04 pm]: Me either. I’m having trouble focusing in class. And I’m the teacher. Pretty sure my students are starting to notice.

[Caroline][4:04 pm]: Off your game?

[Klaus][4:05 pm]: I have them watching a documentary on ancient cave paintings from the bronze era. A move I typically use for my into to art classes. Not my doctoral ones.

[Caroline][4:05 pm]: So they are bored. Got it.

[Klaus][4:05 pm]: Very.

[Klaus][4:05 pm]: That and a certain soulmate has me smiling like an idiot. Its drawing a lot of attention.

[Caroline][4:06 pm]: Blaming me for your inability to focus in class?

[Klaus][4:06 pm]: Of course.

[Caroline][4:06 pm]: Well, don’t blame me. Go teach. Use that big brain of yours because I have a date to get ready for and SOMEONE is distracting me.

[Klaus][4:07 pm]: I suppose I can focus on my students instead of you. But trust me, you’ll have all my attention later.

[Caroline][4:07 pm]: I better.

“So, I just wanted your facial expressions for the last three minutes and I have to say, it was a roller-coaster ride. Wish I had popcorn.” Bonnie replied and Caroline stuck her tongue out at her. She tossed the phone on the bed and sat down on it. Bonnie went over to her manicure kit that Caroline assumed she grabbed from her room. “Here, pick a color to pain your nails. We can build an outfit around that.”

“I’m thinking blue. Matches my eyes. Oh, and we are going to La Rustica so, nice but causal.”

“Good starting place. Now spill.”

“What?”

“Details. I want them. Now.” Bonnie cocked her head at Caroline. “I just watched you have a conversation with who I’m guessing is your future father of your children and I’ve never seen you smile like that. Ever, so, details please.”

“You’re never going to believe it.” Caroline sighed and told her everything from the moment she sat down in class to Klaus inviting her to dinner afterwards. “I always knew hearing him speak that there was just something about him. At first, I figured it was the accent. I mean hot British professor. Come on, even you said he was hot. But the moment he spoke the words.”

That certainly is an interesting perspective and not uncommon.

“You’re happy.” Bonnie looked as though she was about to melt. Caroline nodded. Bonnie did the most un-Bonnie like thing, Caroline had ever witness from her. She squealed. Loudly. “I’m so happy for you. And incredibly jealous.”

“Thank you!” Caroline laughed.

“I mean it. After everything you told me about douche bag Damon and watching your awful relationship with Tyler…” “Hey! My relationship with Tyler was just fine!”

“Care, you never spent any time together and that is probably why it lasted two years. Every time you guys were together, you fought. Trust me, that break up was a mercy for everyone.” Bonnie looked at her seriously. “But now you met your soulmate. Literally, you probably are the only person I know who has met them and frankly, screw you I’m jealous.”

“Give it time Bonnie. Maybe you’ll be next.”

“Caroline, the words on my wrist literally say Pardon me darling, but I think you’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. My soulmate sounds a drunk frat boy picking up girls at a frat party.” Bonnie replied and Caroline gave a snort. “But enough about me, let’s get you looking beautiful so he forgets that you wore your period sweater when you first met.”

Over the next three hours, Caroline painted her nails a baby blue color, had Bonnie dry and style her hair into waves. She applied some light makeup, preferring something more natural looking, while Bonnie continued to root through the closet to fine the perfect outfit. Caroline kept anxiously looking at the clock, watching as the time slowly ticked by and she couldn’t help but fidget.

“What about this?” Bonnie asked, pulling out a nice white lacy tank-top and paired it with a blue cardigan she typically wore to summer weddings. “Add jeans and wedges. You’d look good.”

“Ehh…”

“Wait. I think I have an idea.” Bonnie rooted through her clothes, Caroline wincing at the fact that her color coordinated system was ruined, and pulled out a pair of simple skinny jeans, matched it with the lacy tank-top and slipped Caroline’s favorite pink leather jacket over top. “Cute, casual, but will have him eating out of your hands.”

“I do have those pink stilettos that match that jacket perfectly.” Caroline mused. “I like it.”

“And this.” Bonnie pulled out a large white purse that Caroline rarely ever used for fear of it getting dirty. “Slip a pair of flats in there as well as a top and a change of underwear. You’re all set.” Caroline narrowed her eyes at her. “What? I’m just saying that I don’t plan on waiting up for you. It will make it easier to leave for class tomorrow if you don’t have to swing by here first.”

“I don’t know if that is going to happen. We might want to take it slow. I don’t know.”

“Caroline. You shaved. I know you. You’re planning on it.” Bonnie replied in a matter of fact voice. “Which means, you need to pick something to wear under your clothes. I suggest a strapless bra.” Caroline rolled her eyes, not willing to let Bonnie know she had a point. She got up and went to her dresser, searching through her underwear drawer. She had a few pieces that had not seen the light of day in a while and tonight did give her a very good excuse to wear them.

And she wanted to see Klaus’s eyes bulge out.

Bonnie stepped out and let Caroline get dressed. She pulled on a matching baby-blue bra and pantie set before slipping on the skinny jeans. She looked at herself after she put on the lacy white tank-top, just to ensure that it wasn’t see-through. There was a slight peak of the blue bra at the top but it did not look trashy. One would have to be really looking to see it and she wanted Klaus to look.

It was decided. She was going to do something that she never thought herself capable of.

Caroline Forbes was going to fuck her professor.

When she was getting her purse ready, with all of Bonnie’s suggestions and a few extra needed items, Caroline heard the slight knock on the apartment door. She glanced at her phone and noticed that he was exactly five minutes early. Her lips perked up and she knew that they most definitely were made for each other. Caroline hated being late. She heard Bonnie yell that she would answer the door while Caroline quickly added a few more items to her bag.

“So, you’re the soulmate huh?” Caroline heard Bonnie’s voice, before Klaus could reply, Bonnie pushed on. “I’m Bonnie Bennet, the best friend and person who will cut off your dick if you hurt her. Got it?”

“Bonnie!” Caroline screeched as she came around the corner. She paused when she saw Klaus standing there, torn between amusement and concern. He was dressed down compared to class earlier. He had on a pair of fitted jeans, a grey Henley and a black jacket. That feeling she felt when he first said the words on her wrists returned. Her heart stopped for a moment and she couldn’t stop the smile that grew on her lips. “Hi.”

“Hi.”

“Okay. Yeah. I’m going to go grade papers now.” Bonnie stated as she looked between the two of them. She moved towards Caroline and smiled. She wiggled her eyebrows at Caroline which made her nervousness fade slightly. “Have fun.”

“Bye Bonnie.” Caroline laughed at Bonnie before gripping her purse and walking forwards the door. “Sorry about her. She is my best friend and means absolute every word she said to you. So, you’re forewarned.”

“Noted.” Klaus teased. “Shall we?”

Caroline nodded and the both headed out the door. Unlike their walk across the campus, Klaus did not keep his hands to himself. He wasn’t indecent but he did touch her just ever so slightly. As they walked out to his car, he put his hand on the small of her back. As he drove, his left hand stayed on the wheel while his right held hers. It wasn’t until they pulled up to the little pizzeria that Caroline realized she had been drawing little circles with her thumb the entire way there.

“So, did your students find class any more interesting? Did they become engaged in Neanderthal art?” Caroline teased as they walked towards the door. Without thinking, she grabbed his hand, lacing their fingers together again. At the skin on skin contact, Klaus couldn’t help but smile.

“Not in the slightest.” Caroline laughed. “This is a small class, with about five students total and they all know one another. I think they were all more interest in the fact that I was texting in class than actually teaching.” Klaus opened the door for Caroline, which just earned him bonus points, and looked toward the hostess. “Reservation under Mikaelson.”

The small pizzeria was upscale but didn’t feel as though it was intimidating. The walls were made of brick and there were fairy lights drifting from one side to the other; giving the space a romantic glow. As they walked to their table, Caroline could see wine racks lining the walls that had different types of wine. The tables had a modern rustic look to them that fit in with the cozy romantic feeling the pizzeria was trying to achieve. The hostess led them to a table in the back that would let them be undisturbed but not completely out of view.

“Now, I don’t think that’s fair!” Caroline replied. “We were only texting for about five minutes tops. For all they knew, you could have been texting your mother.”

“If I was texting my mother, trust me when I say that my facial features would be one of annoyance not the, what did young Joshua say to me, ‘love-struck’ expression my face held.”

“No! Seriously? A student said this to you?”

“Small class, Sweetheart.” The waitress approached their table. “Do you prefer white or red wine?”

“White.”

“A bottle of Pinot Grigio, please.” The waitress wrote down the order and left. “Like I was saying, small class and I’ve gotten to know them all fairly well over the last few semesters. Most of them have been my students since they were in their working on their masters. Only a one or two were transplants from other universities. Joshua is a bit braver than the others. He had no problem teasing me for, what the term, ah yea, ‘sleeping on the job’.”

“The gall!” She laughed. “I mean to be honest, you did better than I did. I skipped my next class and if you see Professor Saltzman, feel free to take all responsibility.” Klaus laughed at that. “I’m serious. First class I’ve missed in about ever. Last year, I had that nasty stomach flu and I still showed up to class.”

“I admire your dedication.” He reached across the table and took her hand. Klaus flipped her hand over and began tracing his words on her wrist. Their eyes locked and Caroline could hardly breath at just feeling his fingertip tracing the black ink. It wasn’t until the waitress came back to pour their wine that he removed his hands. “So, tell me, if pizza is one of your favorites, what kind? Let me guess, pineapple?”

“No, but I fully believe that there is nothing wrong with pineapple on pizza.”

“We will have to agree to disagree on that, love.”

“While there is nothing wrong with a good old-fashioned Hawaiian pizza, I can’t help but enjoy the classics.” Caroline looked to the waitress, who wore a soft smile and looked down at Caroline’s uncovered wrists, (knowing fully well that these two were soulmates). “We will take a classic margarita pizza please.”

“I admire a woman who takes charge.” Klaus replied, wearing a smirk. Caroline bit her lip as her mind went a very dirty place that she should be ashamed of. However, by the look Klaus was tossing her way; she could tell that his mind had followed the same path. Gone was the professor who was so engaging in art and the history behind it and was replaced by a man who by the intense stare she was getting, was very passionate.

“Get used to it.”

“I plan to.” The dimpled smirk was back and that did nothing for Caroline’s resolve. What she wanted to do was drag him from the restaurant and screw him in his car but the more rational part of her brain wanted to at least know him just a bit better first. Caroline cleared her throat and pushed a blonde lock behind her ear.

“So…from your comment, I know you have a mom but any other family?” Caroline asked. “Because I googled you. Hard. Beyond stating that you are from London and are practically a genius, it didn’t say much about your personal life.”

“Trying to find out if a girlfriend?”

“No! Wait? Do you? Because that would make this really awkward. Like, what happens if soulmates meet and the other person is like, married or something!” Caroline’s eyes grew wide. “Oh god! You’re not married, are you? Because I’m not. Very single…...very very single.”

“No, love. I’m perfectly unmarried and single, or at least I was until this morning.” Klaus laughed, finding her ramblings refreshing and adorable. “Let’s see where to start. You obviously know about my professional career and yes, I do like to keep my private life…private.” He gave her a heated look again that caused her skin to flush, something he clearly enjoyed doing to her. “Yes. I have a mother but we are not particularly close, distance and all that. I speak to my father maybe once or twice a year. I am one of seven children-”

“Your mom had seven children?” Caroline breathed out, eyes growing wide. That was a lot of siblings. She chose not to comment on his relationship with his parents, figuring he would open about that as their relationship grew. “Wow.”

“Yes. My eldest sister Freya, is a doctor in New York. Neurosurgeon actually. My brother Finn is also a doctor but has a small practice in Oxfordshire, England where he lives with his wife Sage and their five children; who I am perfectly comfortable being the uncle who just sends gifts in the mail.” That made Caroline chuckle. “Don’t get me wrong love, I like kids but my brother’s children are a nightmare.”

“Good to know.” They exchanged a look, an unspoken understanding passed. One day, they would have kids. “Were they soulmates?”

“Finn and Sage? No but they were childhood sweethearts.” Caroline nodded. Soulmates were rare and she realized how lucky she was to have found hers. “Then there is Elijah, he is a dean of a boarding school for spoiled little rich kids in England, although he makes a significant number of trips to the States. Not sure if it is the students or close proximity to our mother.”

“I take it your mother is a character?”

“Harsh and cold would sum it up. You know, typical English upper-class woman. Part of the reason why I pushed myself to graduate secondary school at such a young age.” Klaus replied, brushing past the description of his mother. “Then there is me. Fourth and typical middle child.” Caroline laughed at that. “Then there is Kol. At twenty he picked a random city out of a hat, ran off New Orleans with his college fund and opened a bar…well a year later he opened one when he realized that the drinking age was twenty-one here. He doesn’t get out of bed until well after twelve in the afternoon, just in time to kick his latest conquest out of bed.”

“So, the rebellious child?” Despite his unflattering description of his younger brother, Caroline could hear a hint of affection and exasperation at him. While he seemed distant from his parents, she could sense that the siblings where all close. “And here I thought the Mikaelson clan bred only geniuses. We have two doctors, a dean of a boarding school, a prodigy professor and then a bar owner…what happened there?”

“A question we have all asked at one point or another. My parents were very disappointed, which only made Kol even more pleased. He’s an odd one.” Klaus smiled. “And then there is Rebekah.”

“Uh oh. Let me guess. Spoiled little sister?”

“Very.” Klaus shook his head. “Freya is a lot like our mother in a way. Cold and hard but she has a work ethic that I applaud. She rarely has a social life but is very dedicated to her patients and her field, while Rebekah has not worked for a single thing in her entire life. She was supposed to be the last child so our parents doted on her. She lives primarily off of her trust fund and spends most of her time on some yacht of her boyfriend of the moment; before showing up at one our houses. Unexpectedly of course.”

“She sounds…”

“She is a complete brat but I love her. One day maybe she will settle but lord knows we all have tried to tame her.”

“And your youngest sibling?” Klaus froze slightly, a small shadow passed over his eyes but then after a second, he gave a small smile. Before he could speak, their waitress was back with their pizza and some plates. It wasn’t until the each grabbed their own slices that Caroline had the courage to press forward. “Are you okay? If you don’t want to-“

“It’s okay.” He sighed. “Henrik was the youngest and unexpected baby of the family. After Rebekah, my parents did not want anymore children. Six kids were enough but Henrik came along and made everything better, if that makes sense. He was shy and funny and loved to laugh. He was genially a good soul.”

“What happened to him?” Caroline did not miss how he used the past-tense when he spoke of his youngest brother. She reached across the table and took his hand in hers. Klaus ran his thumb over her knuckles and she could tell that her touch brought him comfort.

“I was working at the Louvre at the time. Henrik was supposed to come and spend the summer with me that year. He was seventeen and like I said, he had a heart of gold. A friend of his had gone to a party and had one too many and was too scared to call his parents. Both my parents were working that night and the only other person home was Rebekah. So, he left alone and went to pick his friend up. Two other kids from the same party did not call a ride and left, they both were heavily intoxicated. Ended up running my brother off the road. Henrik and is friend died instantly.”

“I’m so sorry.” Caroline had tears streaming down her face. She did not know what to say other than that. She could tell that Klaus felt the loss of his little brother deeply. She wished that she could take that pain away but knew nothing she said would make it better. Klaus leaned forward and wiped away the small tears from her cheeks.

“I don’t like seeing you cry.” That made her smile instead. “It was six years ago. Yes, it hurts but I’m to the point where I can remember him fondly.” With that he pulled away and picked up his pizza, something Caroline completely forgot they had. She followed suit but her mind still on Klaus’s brother. “What about you, any siblings I should know about?”

“Nope. Just little old. My mom often tells me that I broke the mold and she couldn’t handle another one of me.” Klaus burst out laughing, drawing attention from a few other people in the pizzeria. “Shh.” Caroline turned to a few other patrons and mouthed her apologizes.

“I may have only known you for a few hours but I think your mother is right. You seem like a handful.” Klaus teased her and tossed her an innocent expression yet his eyes had mischief written all over them.

“Maybe. Are you up to the challenge?”

“Most certainly.” Klaus lifted his glass of wine to his lips and Caroline couldn’t help but lick her lips as his tongue peaked out eve so slightly. He gave her that look that sent heat straight to her core; and by how he was eyeing her; Caroline could tell that she was having the same effect on him. “I find it very unfair that you were able to google me and all I could find was your college transcripts in your student file.”

“You read my file?!”

“What else was I supposed to do during a documentary about Neanderthal cave drawings?”

“I don’t know? Teach?”

“I learned a good bit of interesting facts about you.” With that, Klaus pulled out his phone and began to scroll. “Let’s see, shall we. You were Miss Mystic Falls your junior year of high school, which I had to look up by the way because I’ve never heard of it. Small town Virginia, looks charming. You were the chair of the Mystic Falls beautification committee and the director of the policeman’s yearly raffle.” Klaus shot her a coy look. “On top of maintaining a 4.0 GPA average in high school. Very impressive. My favorite part, of course, was your essay. ‘When I am accepted,’ really liking the use of ‘when’ here, very confidant, ‘I intend to redefine excellence and above all, I promise to aspire, inspire and perspire…obviously we ran out of words shortage of words ending in ‘spire’.”

“Oh god.” By this point, Caroline was covering her hands with her face. She was silently cursing herself at the moment, no matter how joyful Klaus seemed in that moment. It was clear that he was just waiting to bring that up. “Laugh it up. I can’t believe you found that. I almost wish you photo stalked my Facebook instead and found unflattering pictures of me.”

“Well, you just secured my plans for later.”

“Play your cards right and you might be too busy.” They shared another fiery look that spoke volumes. Caroline had to look away, focusing on her pizza and grabbing another slice before being able to peak at him. He was still watching her, clearly imagining what he was going to be doing to her later. “You’re staring. It’s creepy.”

“Is it?” They both knew the answer. Klaus leaned back in his chair, with his arms crossed; enjoying her flushed cheeks. “So, what was not on your college application and other academic transcripts?”

“Well…” Caroline thought of what to tell him. Frankly, compared to what she knew of him, there wasn’t much in her life that she found impressive about herself. “As you know, only child. Parents divorced when I was about fifteen. My dad turned to be gay and as I’m sure you can imagine how that strained the marriage.” Klaus nodded, his eyes widening slightly. “My dad and his partner Stephen live in Charlotte but I don’t see them often. My mom is the sheriff of Mystic Falls and very keen on teaching me to shoot a gun.”

“Sounds like Bonnie is not the only one I have to worry about?”

“Nope. My mother will most definitely get to you first.”

“I was talking about you Sweetheart. You seem like you can take care of yourself.” Caroline smiled at the hint of pride in his voice. “I wasn’t lying earlier Caroline. I like a woman who can take charge and care for herself.”

“Good.” Caroline chuckled. She took a sip of her wine and Klaus reached over for the bottle and poured her another glass. He was driving so he was sipping his glass slowly but there was no reason why she couldn’t indulge slightly. She trusted him. “So, you said Finn and Sage were not soulmates but did any of your siblings find theirs?”

“No.” Klaus shook his head. “Rebekah had this dream to find hers but…her words faded before she got the chance.” Caroline nodded. It was not uncommon that the words written on someone’s wrist to fade. It meant that their soulmate passed away in some fashion. “She was seemingly okay though. I had thought that she would be devastated but Rebekah bounced back and went on her merry way. Despite the fact that she is spoiled and bratty, she is a strong woman and I admire that about her.”

“Good for her. For bouncing back.” Caroline could tell that out of all of his siblings, he was closest to this wild child of a sister and Caroline wondered how the she would get on with her. Caroline vowed to do her best because she wanted this to work and could not imagine being on bad terms with Klaus’s family. “Sometimes, that is not the case.”

“You speak like you have experience in that?” Klaus asked lightly but Caroline looked down at her plate. She did not expect to get into this now. She did not expect to be revealing her deepest shame on the first date, over really good pizza to her professor. Yet, she trusted Klaus. She knew that he would never hurt her. “Caroline?”

She looked up to see him giving her a concerned look. She did not like that look on him. She wanted to see him happy, laughing and flirting as he had been all night. Their pizza was almost gone and the night would progress onward. Yet, this wasn’t just this night in play here. It was the rest of her life. Her entire outlook changed in the span of a few hours and no matter what happened, Klaus would be there. At least, she hoped he would be. Some things were never certain.

“I knew someone whose soulmate died.” Klaus nodded, not saying anything but was eyeing her with worry. She reached over the table and grabbed both his hands into hers. She needed contact with him. Even though she only knew him for a few short hours, she felt as though Klaus gave her strength. “I was sixteen. Rebelling hardcore. My parents were pretty much absent. Dad was with Stephen and mom threw herself into work. That is when I met him.” Klaus froze but gave her hands a comforting squeeze. She could see that his mind was going a mile a minute; thinking of the worst scenarios. “His name was Damon and he was about six years older than me. Bad boy. But if there was a bad boy within a five-mile radius, I would find him.”

“What happened?”

“At first, I thought he liked me. He was first in everything.” She gave him a significant look and Klaus understood her meaning. “I was young and stupid. He told me stories of his soulmate. Her name was Katherine and she died six months after they met. House fire. He never really got over it. He drank sometimes, he would either pretend that I was Katherine or just be mean…”

“Did he hurt you?”

“Klaus..”

“Caroline, did he hurt you?” Klaus asked again. She could tell that he was trying to stay calm. He was imagining the worst ways a man could hurt a woman and Caroline began to panic. That wasn’t the case. While Damon was mean and controlling, he wasn’t violent. He wasn’t a good boyfriend but he never laid a hand on her.

“No! No. Nothing like that.” Caroline vowed and Klaus’s shoulder’s sagged in relief. “I’m sorry. This is coming out all wrong. Damon and I’s relationship was complicated. He was older and hurt and I was so young and naive. He prayed on my insecurities and made me feel worthless but he never laid a hand on me. In anyway. I promise. My mother would have killed him if he did. Although, honestly she didn’t know about the relationship until years after it took place.”

“Okay.” Klaus nodded. He let go of her hand briefly and picked up his wine glass. He took a long drink and sat it back down. Klaus looked at her and there was such conviction behind those bright blue eyes that she quickly began to adore. “I want you to listen to me. You’re not worthless. You are by far the most amazing person I have met. You’re fascinating, strong and so full of light. Even before our words were spoken, I noticed you were beautiful.”

“Really?”

“Yes”. He laughed. “But I was your professor and you were my student. Like you said this afternoon, there is a distinct line that should not be crossed.”

“But one we are crossing?”

“Oh, most definitely.” Caroline bit her lip in understanding. Their hand where still connected and Caroline thought that if she let go, the moment would crumble and reality would set in. “You know, your transcripts were not the only thing I looked into this afternoon.”

“That documentary must have been really boring.” Klaus smiled.

“This was during my office hours actually.” Caroline just gave him a mock impressed look causing that dimpled, cheeky smile to appear. “I looked at my contract. There is, as you would imagine, a clause about professor and student relationships. Of course, it says that anyone in a position of authority should not have intimate relations with a student.” For a split second, Caroline looked forlorn but Klaus pressed on. “However, there was a sub-clause regarding soulmates. If a professor happens to find his or her soulmate in one of their students, the rules are…different.”

“Different how?” Caroline’s breath froze. Despite the overwhelming joy she felt at finding her soulmate and the fact that Klaus was everything she imagined him to be, part of her was still worried over how this would affect her academic career. She had worked hard to prove herself at Duke. She built a life and wanted to continue on this path she mapped out for herself. She didn’t want Klaus, who she already knew she would be unable to give up, stand in the way of that. Then of course, the last thing she wanted was for Klaus to be punished for having an inappropriate relationship with a student. Universities took those situations seriously and it was not unheard of that a professor would lose their job if he or she was found taking advantage of a student. She didn’t want that for Klaus.

“I can’t advise you on anything. I can’t grade your papers or if, for example, you were to pursue your doctorate at Duke, I can’t be apart of it. I would have to remove myself from the board who would oversee your research. You can continue with my course but with the understanding that I will not be the one who you go to with questions.” Caroline nodded. “I will have to report this to the Dean and there will be protocols to follow.”

“You haven’t already told him?”

“No.”

“Why?”

“I wanted to see how this went.” Klaus admitted. “I wanted to see how dinner and tonight went first. It would be nearly impossible for me to give you up. After that brief encounter in my class this afternoon, I knew I wanted to be with you.” Klaus paused, searching her face before he spoke the next few words. “But if you wanted to wait until you finished with your doctorate, I would wait.”

“But that could take years!” Caroline looked at him with a slacked jaw. He would have waited for her. However long it took, he would have sat by while she completed her dreams. Even if it took her a decade, although, this was Caroline Forbes, it would not take her a decade, to complete her degree, he would have waited. “We need to go.”

“What?”

“Like right now. Check please.” Caroline raised her hand, trying to get the waitress’s attention. Klaus continued to question her but she ignored him. Her mind was made up. They needed to get out of this restaurant immediately. The waitress came over quickly and Caroline asked for the check. Klaus looked at her with a baffled expression. “Look, you just said you were willing to wait, I don’t know at minimum four years for me, which is a long ass time. You pretty much spelled out that you want me to complete my dreams. If anything is getting you laid. It’s that.”

“Oh.” Klaus was speechless. He did not know exactly how to respond to that but continued to look at her with amazement. “Yeah. Check please.”

The waitress came back quickly and before Caroline could protest, Klaus pulled out his card and handed it to the waitress. The look he shot her told her not to argue and accept it. No matter how much Caroline was an independent woman, the southern belle in her liked to see a gentleman pay for dinner. So, she allowed it.

There was a tension that sizzled between them. It was a low burn that they both could feel. Neither spoke but instead waited for the check to come. Caroline tapped her fingers on the table while Klaus swirled his wine in the glass. When the waitress finally appeared with the check; Klaus signed quickly and held out his hand for Caroline.

Eagerly she laced her fingers with his and he all but pulled her from the chair. Quickly, Caroline grabbed her purse and the two of them made their way out of the pizzeria. Their pace was quick but Klaus was mindful of the fact that Caroline was in stilettos; a fact that he learned from having a diva little sister. Their hands where still linked together as they walked towards Klaus’s car.

“Wait.” Caroline paused as Klaus was opening the passenger side door for her. He stopped and looked at her with questions in his eyes. He would only go forward if she was certain, he wanted no doubts on her part. “I just want you to know that I don’t do this. I don’t jump into bed with anyone on a first date. I like to get to know them. Make sure they are not going to bury me in their basement or wrap me up in their carpet to let my body decompose in the woods.” Klaus raised his eyebrow in question and a smirk playing on his lips. “My mom was a cop, okay?! I think of these things. The point is. We kind of just met…only not really because I’ve been in your course for like less than two week-“

Klaus stepped forward and latched his lips on to her. Caroline, once she got over her split-second shock, Caroline melted into the kiss. Klaus placed his hands on her hips and Caroline wrapped her arms around his shoulders. If she thought the mere holding of hands sent her into a tailspin, it was nothing compared to his lips upon hers. She could taste the wine on his lips mixed with his saliva. For a moment, she forgot they were in a parking lot or the fact that she just really met him. All she could think about was how good it felt to kiss him. When they broke apart, Klaus held her in his arms, his forehead pressed against hers.

“I know Caroline. I know that this isn’t the run of the mill for you because it isn’t for me either.” Klaus kissed her nose and Caroline laughed lightly. “To be honest, it has been awhile since my last relationship and awhile since anyone has been in my bed. I don’t sleep around and I want you to know, that from this point forward, it’s just going to be you. I can’t explain it. Maybe it is the soul mark or whatever deity was kind enough to let us meet, but I just want you.” Caroline kissed him again but it was light this time. A simple peck upon the lips to let him know she heard him. “Just…you. I want you. So, for all that is holy, please get in that car before we are arrested for, I don’t know, something indecent.”

“Okay.” Caroline nodded and Klaus opened the car door and ushered her inside. The drive itself went quickly despite the fact that she felt that Klaus was obeying way too many traffic laws for such an occasion. When he pulled into a drive of a small craftsman house, she couldn’t help but smile. Briefly she wondered if he had a roommate or if one of his many siblings were visiting. “Do you…live alone?”

“Completely.”

“Thank god.” She stepped out of the car and followed him up the porch steps. He fumbled with his keys before letting them inside his house. The lights were off so Caroline did not really have a chance to take in his decor and before she could comment, Klaus had her pinned to the door.

His lips were on hers the second she felt the wood of the door hit her back. His lips molded to hers and Caroline could not help but press her body into his. Klaus’s hands wandered down her body; touching each and every curve that he could find. Caroline weaved her hands through his hair, scraping his scalp with her nails as she went. Klaus hissed in pleasure.

Caroline pushed his black coat off his shoulders, hearing it hit the ground behind him. Klaus’s hands moved inside of her own leather jacket and soon enough, she felt it slip from her shoulders. She pushed off the door in order to allow Klaus to pull it from her completely. The moment it was gone from her shoulders, Caroline found herself pressed against the door again.

Their lips broke apart and Klaus started kissing his way down her neck. His hands moved up her body, cupping her breasts while Caroline arched into him. Her head tilted backwards against the door, allowing him access to her neck. The feel of his lips against her skin made Caroline shiver. Her foot moved up his leg until her entire leg was hooked around his hip.

Klaus thrusted against her; Caroline hissing at the feeling of his covered erection grinding into her core. They dry humped against Klaus’s front door while Caroline continued to dig her nails into his scalp. Klaus hissed when she pressed with slightly too much pressure.

“Do that again.” Klaus demanded and Caroline obliged, letting her nails drag through his hair. Klaus’s hands roamed upward, cupping her breast and running his thumbs over her nipples. Dissatisfied with the lack of skin showing, Klaus ripped her tank-top in two; tossing the scraps to the side.

“I liked that shirt.”

“I’ll buy you a new one.” He kissed her again, his hands feeling her flat stomach. His fingertips dipped ever so slightly into the waist of her jeans. Caroline began pulling at his Henley, lifting it across his muscles. Klaus pulled away, rising his hands; allowing Caroline to pull it off of him. She tossed it somewhere into the dark house. She spied a tattoo etched into his shoulder blade. It was too dark for Caroline to really get a clear look of what the tattoo was but either way, she leaned down to place her lips against the design. “Caroline.”

Her name came out like a prayer. She looked up and locked eyes with him. The lust mixed something deeper was far too much for Caroline to process. Her hand slowly made its way up his chest, latching onto the silver chain that hung around his neck and pulled his lips to hers. The kiss set a new fire through Caroline. The slight contact of his flesh against hers was not enough.

“Your bed. I want in it.” Klaus bit gently at her bottom lip before pulling away completely. He grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the darken stairway. She stumbled slightly, not being able to see and they both chucked slightly. Klaus reached for a light switch at the top of the stairs and illuminated a hallway. At the top of the stairs, when she could see him clearly, Caroline reached for his left hand. She brought his wrist to her lips and kissed the long monologue that she knew he had read at least a thousand times.

Never before had she loved Degas so much.

“This way.” His voice was hoarse and filled with longing. His head tilted towards a room just shy of her left. Klaus pulled her down the hallway and into a darkened room. Instead of reaching for the light switch on the wall, he went to the bedside table and turned on the table lamp, dropping her hand as he went. He didn’t want the overhead light on, overpowering the feeling of the moment but he wanted to be able to see her.

Caroline, not being able to tear her eyes from him, reached behind her and unhooked her bra. It drooped slightly before she pulled it off completely, tossing it to some unknown part of the room. Klaus’s eyes lingered over her breasts and she could see him swallow in desire. Klaus stepped forward and reached out to touch her. His hand cupped her breasts, his thumb gracing over her nipple. She hissed at the contact. Not being able to take another second, Caroline pulled him to her, kissing him. She pressed her chest against his, feeling her erect nipples gracing his skin.

Once they broke apart, she placed her hand on his chest and pushed him onto the bed. He sat down, just watching her every movement. Enjoying his eyes on her, Caroline kicked off her heels and began to unbutton her jeans. She pushed them down her legs and stepped out of them. Klaus reached out to grab her hips, feeling the lace of her blue panties in his hand.

Caroline placed one knee on the bed and lifted herself in order to straddle him. She sat on his lap and began to grind herself against him. She leaned in to kiss in on the lips before leaving a trail of caresses down his neck to his throat. She sucked on the spot where his neck met his shoulder, not caring if she left a mark. Let his students know he was taken; claimed only for her. She thrusted her hips down, pressing herself against him; the friction almost unbearable.

“I need you.” Klaus whispered as her teeth grazed his skin.

“I’m not stopping you. I’m all yours.” Not being able to handle being at her mercy a second longer, Klaus gripped her hips and flipped them. Caroline found herself underneath him, her legs spread and him grinding into her. It wasn’t enough. She reached down and unbuckled his belt before pushing the offending fabric down his legs. Klaus crawled off of her, something Caroline did not like in the slightest. “Hey! Come back.”

“Patents Sweetheart. I’ll be right here.” Klaus replied as Caroline propped herself up on her forearms. She tiled her head when she realized that he was taking off his jeans. Realizing her interest, he could not help but make a show out of it. Inch by inch, he dropped his jean and boxers; enjoying the feel of gaze on his skin. Biting her lip as she took in the sight of him. Her fingers traced a path over her pantie line as she gazed at his impressive erection. “Remove those panties love, they are in the way.”

Caroline did as she was told and lifted her hips, sliding her panties down her legs. Once they were at her ankle, she couldn’t help but kick them at him. Klaus caught them easily. He could feel the lace in his hand and the dampness from her arousal seeped into the fabric. He dropped them onto the ground before crawling between her outstretched legs. He reached towards his bedside table but Caroline grabbed his wrist.

“I have an IUD. No need for condoms.” Klaus smiled widely at that. He leaned down and kissed her. “I’m clean too. No need to worry about diseases. Completely not sexy. Diseases I mean.”

"No. Not at all.” Klaus leaned kissed her again. “No need to worry about that on my end.”

“Good.” Caroline reached down to grasp him in her hand. She stroked him slightly, enjoying how his eyes fluttered shut at the contact. She brought him close to her clit, coating his member her in arousal; moaning as she did so. The feeling of her clit pressed against his penis, Klaus’s eyes shot open and he gazed down at her. He reached down, their fingers brushing as he aligned himself with her entrance. “Please. I need you.”

Klaus slid into her, filling her as far as he could. The feel of connecting with one another was something neither was prepared for. It was more than fireworks going off behind one’s eyes as the stories foretold. It was more than coming home after a long day. It was the sense of belonging or finally understand the meaning to existence.

They were connected in a way neither expected. They just laid there together for a moment; adjusting. When it became to much for Klaus to bare, he slowly withdrew his hips and then thrusted forward. Caroline whimpers of pleasure encouraged him forward. His movements were slow at first but once they were able to develop a rhythm, his pace picked up.

“Harder. Oh god, please go harder.” Caroline cried out and Klaus obliged. His slammed into her as fast as he could. Caroline’s nails dug into his shoulders, scarping down his backs. The pain mixed with pleasure had Klaus crying out. He buried his head into her neck; his lips sucking at her neck. She had marked him earlier and he wanted nothing more than the imprint of his lips to mare her skin. “God yes! Klaus!”

The bed creaked under their weight. The headboard banged off the wall and the springs of the mattress whimpering in protest. Skin hit skin and the smell of sex lingered in the air. Their sweaty bodies continued to intertwine until Caroline’s walls clenched around Klaus’s member. Her orgasm shook her, and sent shock-waves down her body.

It wasn’t long before Klaus toppled over the edge; a few more thrusts and he was done for. He released himself inside her; his hips jerking forward as he came. Caroline leaned up and kissed his lips until he regained himself. His eyes slowly opened and Caroline smiled up at him. Seeing her happy expression peering at him made return the beam down on her.

Klaus pulled himself from her body and laid on his back, his heart still pumping as though he had run a race. It had been a long while since he had good sex; and sex with Caroline proved to be exceptional. The woman in question crawled up to align her body with his and rest her head on his chest. Klaus pulled her to him; his arms around her.

“Well damn.” Caroline muttered, not knowing what else to say. Klaus’s chest rumbled with laughter. He leaned down at kissed the top of her head in affection.

“No rambling monologue for me now? Pity. I do enjoy those.”

“How are you teasing me right now? My brain is mush! I have no comebacks! Be nice and wait until my brain is not in a sex induced fog.” Klaus couldn’t help himself. He started laughing and Caroline didn’t know if she should be insulted or join in on the laughter.

“Please, Sweetheart. Never stop scolding me or telling me off in your insane rambles. Your mind is a marvel and I cannot wait to hear what you say next.” Klaus stated, knowing full well that he liked how she often took him off guard. He could never predict what she was going to say next.

“Always…I think.” She leaned up to kiss his chest. “I’m not going anywhere. You’re stuck with me now.”

“Good.” He kissed the top of her head. “Because I can’t imagine anyone else I’d rather be stuck with.”

#klaroline fanfiction #kcauweek2020 #klaroline #caroline x klaus

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taexual · 5 years ago

Text

HOLIC - 44 | jb x reader

pairing: Im Jaebum x Reader

genre: enemies to lovers au | roommate au

warnings: it’s just raw angst

words: 7.2k

disclaimer: i do not own the gif, please let me know if it belongs to you, so i can give proper credit

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It only took you a few days to finish editing all of the pictures you’d taken of Jaebum that night. You ran them by him first – and smacked him when he tried to make you swear he’d always be your only model – and then emailed them to his agency. You still needed their approval so, even though Jaebum had insisted you take these pictures, it was possible that his employers were going to end up hiring someone else, after all.

Except, as you learned on your way to work that Friday, they didn’t. As it turned out, the only problem Jaebum’s producer had with the pictures you’ve taken was that he couldn’t choose one. It felt like the biggest compliment you’ve ever been told.

The entire day would have been wonderful – Fridays already carried a certain aura of just being plain great – had it not been for a text Jiho sent you right when you were wrapping up, ready to head home. Apparently, his old friend was holding an exhibition at one of the out-of-town galleries he’d worked with before so you needed to keep your Saturday free.

Grateful that he’d warned you—sort of—in advance this time, you texted back in confirmation and were surprised to learn that Jiho actually expected you to bring your camera to the exhibition. For a moment, you thought he’d found out you’d taken Jaebum up to the balcony and had completely stolen Jiho’s photoshoot spot, so he was now going to get back at you by taking your camera and locking it away or something equally as unrealistic. But then you realized that made no sense – even if he had learned about your impromptu photoshoot, why would he try to get back at you? You’d done nothing wrong. Quite the opposite, actually.

Getting the approval of Jaebum’s agency provided you with a huge boost of confidence that you obviously needed. They liked your pictures so much, they didn’t know which ones to use – that had to mean you were, at least, somewhat better than average at what you did. What was more, that had to mean that, perhaps, you’d been too pessimistic about the number of opportunities you would get to make yourself known. Maybe you wouldn’t have to completely rely on Jiho to get your name out there, after all.

In the time leading up to the exhibition you had to attend with Jiho that Saturday night, you couldn’t get the memory of the photoshoot with Jaebum out of your head. Taking pictures of him had been nothing short of wonderful. You both had fun – although you did nearly freeze your hands off – and just seeing him through the lens of your camera inspired you so much, you had come up with three new ideas for a photoshoot if this one didn’t work out. But it did work out. Not only did you thoroughly enjoy the photoshoot itself, but the end result was also splendid. You couldn’t have been happier.

However, ruining the utter bliss of your routine with Jaebum as the two of you munched on pizza in his bed that Friday night, you got a call from Hyojin who was demanding to see you immediately. Normally, you’d have turned any offer to go out down – there was simply nothing you’d have rather done that what you’d already been doing – but because she was one of your best friends and, frankly, she sounded absolutely terrifying on the phone, you forced yourself out of bed.

“Are you seriously leaving right when Johnny Depp discovers the—”

“Oh, no,” you stopped Jaebum by extending your hand in front of his face. “Just because you’ve seen Sleepy Hollow before doesn’t mean you get to spoil the ending for me. Or watch it without me. Pause it, I won’t be long.”

“That’s not the ending, it’s barely even the middle,” he mumbled, pausing the movie nevertheless. “And are you saying I’m going to have to stare at the ceiling while I wait for you?”

“It’s just fifteen minutes,” you said. “Jacob’s dropping her off in front of our building. There’s no way Hyojin will make him wait for very long.”

“Why is she coming all this way over here, anyway?” he asked, already knowing all about your friends and their boyfriends. “And, at this hour, nonetheless?”

“It’s nine on a Friday night,” you said matter-of-factly. “She was probably out drinking like normal people do. It’s just you and I who get drunk on a Monday night instead.”

Jaebum grinned at the jab. “Fair point. I’ve paused the movie for you – consider that when you’re out and don’t keep me waiting for too long.”

“I will keep your sacrifices in mind,” you leaned over to kiss him and then stumbled out of his bedroom, your jeans still only halfway on.

Hyojin hadn’t been to your neighborhood before and it showed – she had her boyfriend drive around the block three times before she called and got you to come to the building they’d eventually parked outside of. But even despite getting lost, she looked like she thought that coming all the way over here was worth it.

“It’s great to see you,” you told her after the two of you hugged hello. “But, seriously, what’s up? You’ve never driven this far for me before, usually we just—”

“No, I know,” she cut you off, pulling her phone out of her pocket. “But you need to see this. I couldn’t text you the link because, well, yelling at you over text is not the same as yelling at you in real life. So, here. Look.”

She pressed something on her phone and then passed it on to you.

From the looks of it, Hyojin had opened up a tabloid site – with some very bad formatting that warped the text in every second paragraph – but you didn’t get to check what kind of site because your eyes immediately caught Jiho’s name in the headline. And then your name following right after.

“Oh, shit,” you muttered under your breath, reading on.

The article seemed to be a quick recap of the dinner you’d attended with Jiho earlier this week. It was accompanied by some high-quality pictures of the people who were there – and thus, you realized that this wasn’t actually a tabloid site at all, this must have been a blog-like website by one of the dinner guests – but its’ main focus, without a doubt, was the “budding relationship between the most promising young photographer” – Jiho – “and his muse” – you.

“I’m not—this wasn’t supposed to—oh, fuck,” you tossed around helplessly, handing Hyojin her phone back. “How did you even find this?”

“I didn’t. Jacob showed it to me,” she replied, her face executing every sign that she was about to scold you good. “One of his friends from publishing was at that dinner, so he was showing Jacob the pictures and Jake thought he’d recognized you. Turns out, his friend was actually looking forward to meeting you. He’d referred to you as “Jiho’s girlfriend.”

“God, no, it’s not—”

“Yeah, I sure hope it’s not,” Hyojin continued, too fired up to let you finish, “because this implies that you’re still in touch with that asshat and, not just that, but you’re also dating him.”

You momentarily recalled your last conversation with May at Mark’s bar. Evidently, she’d kept quiet about the revelation that your entire future depended on Jiho, so Hyojin was completely in the dark about it all.

“I’m not. I swear, I’m not. I would never! Jaebum—he’s right upstairs, waiting—God, this is messed up,” you brought your hands over your face in an attempt to collect your thoughts so you’d finally form a coherent sentence. “Listen, you can’t tell anyone because I’m not sure if I’m allowed to speak about this – at least not to the press – but—”

“Well, go right ahead,” she urged, “I’m not the press.”

“Yeah, but Jacob is,” you nodded your head towards the car Hyojin had just stepped out of – or, perhaps, sprinted out of would have put it more accurately since she hopped right out, slamming the door shut before you even got a glimpse of her boyfriend.

“He’s not that kind of press,” Hyojin rolled her eyes. “He doesn’t care about some photographer that’s fresh out of the womb. No one does. No offense.”

You didn’t take offense – she was right. As Mark had pointed out in his bar the other day, the only people who cared about photographers were other photographers.

“Right,” you swallowed. “Well, this was Jiho’s idea. He thought I should get some exposure before my exhibition.”

Hyojin frowned. “Why does he get to decide that?”

God, you thought you appreciated May for not telling the rest of your friends about this – she must have thought you should have been the one to do that – but now you wished she had, just like she revealed the truth about who your roommate was. You’d planned to keep Jaebum’s identity a secret but ended up spilling it all to her while wine-drunk and, in turn, May had told the rest of your friends. If she’d done the same thing now, perhaps you wouldn’t have had to face Hyojin’s judgemental eyes.

“Because,” you closed your eyes, “it’s his gallery.”

“What?”

“Yeah,” you groaned, your fingers suddenly very drawn to your scalp and, particularly, ripping your hair out of it. “God, it’s a long story.”

“Honey,” your friend put her hand on your shoulders, a very determined expression on her face, “I’ve got all night.”

Jacob pulled his window down, having overheard her say this. “You really don’t, love. We have a movie to catch in half an hour. Hello, by the way.”

“Hey, Jake,” you gave him an awkward wave which he acknowledged with a nod and then slid his window back up, giving you and Hyojin some privacy – even though he could, clearly, hear everything from inside of the car anyway. “You should go, Jin. I swear nothing’s happening. His gallery reached out to me and offered me… something. It’s not just an exhibition, it’s a whole ton of other stuff, too. It’s a great contract, really. But before I get to lay claim to any of those perks, I have to become more well-known so that my first exhibition isn’t a complete bust. That dinner is a part of a-a PR stunt, you know? Like, we were supposed to appear together as two photographers, having dinner—”

“Is that not what you did?” she asked, interrupting you.

“It is, but—well, they’re calling me his muse,” you replied. “Not his colleague. So, that’s not exactly what was supposed to happen but, I guess, it’s still exposure.”

“Are you going to do something about this, then?” she continued.

“I don’t know what I can—”

“And what does Jaebum think about this wonderful stunt?”

Her questions already made it difficult to catch your breath but this last one seemed to punch you right in the lungs.

“He doesn’t know,” you wheezed out, not raising your eyes from the pavement.

For the second time that night, Hyojin’s jaw opened and froze in that position. “What?”

“N-no, I mean, he knows I’m doing these events for publicity,” you tried to explain, guilt flashing all over your face. “He just doesn’t know—”

“That they’re with Jiho?” she raised her eyebrows in an oddly accusing manner. “Babe, what are you doing?”

“I’m—”

She shook her head, choosing not to listen to another excuse. “You have to tell him.”

“I will!” you said, sounding far too exasperated. You’d already told everyone but Jaebum and the constant promises you made about telling him were starting to weigh down on your consciousness. “He’s just been so happy, getting that contract with an agency, and all. Everything’s going so well, it just doesn’t feel right to piss on his parade. He wanted this for so long.”

That sounded like an excuse and both of you knew it.

“Don’t think you’re doing him a favor by not telling him,” Hyojin reprimanded immediately.

“I know I’m not,” you said. “And I will tell him. Just not right this moment.”

“Well, if he sees the article, it will be too late, won’t it?”

“He won’t see it,” you said and then, after a moment of panic, added a fearful, “will he?”

Hyojin sighed. “Honestly, no, he probably won’t. The only reason Jake even saw that was because of that co-worker who showed it to him. There are probably, like, six people who read that website and I don’t think Jaebum is one of them. I hope that isn’t the kind of publicity Jiho meant.”

“I hope not,” you echoed. “Although it makes sense that no one cares about this. We’re irrelevant.”

“No, he had one thing right – people don’t care about these dinners but they do care about who’s dating whom, even if the people in question aren’t too famous,” she said. “Sex sells—”

Your eyes widened. “Sex?”

“You know what I mean,” she waved your surprise off. “People care about that shit. They want to know who’s sleeping with—”

“It’s just—just a few events,” you cut her off, just the mere mention of anyone assuming you and Jiho were having sex enough to send your stomach into a panicked frenzy. “Any publicity is good publicity, right?”

“Well, Jake would disagree but he’s not trying to become a celebrity. He just writes about them.”

“Right,” you nodded, allowing the looming awkward silence to finally engulf you both.

“Are you sure you’re doing the right thing?” Hyojin asked another uncomfortably long moment later.

“No. I’m not sure about anything,” you replied honestly. “But I want that exhibition and if that’s the only way—”

“You know it’s not,” she disagreed right away. “And, frankly, faking a relationship with someone doesn’t seem worth it.”

You continued to count the tiles on the pavement, feeling – and looking – like a scolded kindergartner. Any other time, you’d have felt like she just didn’t understand your situation. Merely a few days ago, you were convinced you weren’t good enough to find a place to host your exhibition some other way, but now you’d achieved a huge breakthrough with the pictures you’d taken for Jaebum. Now you believed in yourself a little – oh, alright, a lot – more.

“This isn’t long-term,” you decided to say. “It’s just a few weeks tops. That’s two or three more events and I’ve got another one tomorrow night. It’ll all be over before long: I’ll have my exhibition and then I can forget all about Jiho.”

“Hmm,” Hyojin had crossed her arms and was now looking decidedly skeptical. “And, I suppose, you’ll tell Jaebum about this another decade later, yeah? I don’t really understand why you—”

“I’m afraid,” you cut her off. She didn’t seem to understand why you sounded so agitated so, after sighing so deep, your whole chest began to ache, you explained, “I don’t want to lose him. I’ve already fucked up before and it lead to some hefty arguments. But that was before we were together, so they weren’t as significant.”

“When are arguments ever not significant?”

“Fine, they were significant,” you said. “But they never posed a threat to our relationship because there wasn’t one. And now that there is, I’m afraid that if we fight, it will break us up.”

“So, what, you’ll spend the rest of your life walking on your tip-toes, avoiding arguments with him because you’re afraid?” Hyojin asked. The more she talked, the less your words made sense to you. Suddenly, you couldn’t understand why you kept talking at all.

“No,” you said awkwardly. “No, that’s just stupid, I can’t avoid arguments with him for the rest of my life, but it’s so soon. We’ve only been together for, what, a few weeks, a month—”

“When did you move in with him?”

“I-I don’t know, a few months ago,” you blinked, not sure how this question was relevant. “Maybe three, three and a half—”

“Alright, so you’ve been with him for three and a half months, then,” Hyojin concluded.

“No, but we weren’t together before—”

“No,” she declared louder so she could talk over you – just like she seemed to do the whole night tonight. “No, babe. Every argument you’ve had with him since the day you moved in was equally as significant, and yet, not a single one posed any threats to your relationship. Not-a-single-one, you hear me? Because, from what you’ve told me, you and him have gotten pretty intense with each other before and yet, neither of you moved out. Not even when you didn’t think you were going to end up together. You have some real stuff between you, you know what I mean? The kind of stuff that can’t be broken by arguments… but might get irrevocably stained by secrets.”

You didn’t have a response to give her and sighed instead but Hyojin understood everything you couldn’t say just from your breath.

“You don’t want to do this with Jiho, either,” she said gently. “So, don’t put yourself through something you don’t want to do. Do it your way. So what if it takes longer?”

It wasn’t the first time someone had said that to you and it certainly wasn’t the first time that you considered the weight of these words. They were heavy but that was the case with the truth – it weighed you down until you could barely move.

“We said we were going to do this together,” you whispered under your breath, the engine of Jacob’s car nearly drowning your words out. “So, if I don’t do this, I’ll just have to watch him walk away from me.”

“Walk away from—honey, no,” Hyojin sighed, wrapping her arms around you, her sweet perfume so familiar, you almost started to cry. “He wouldn’t.”

“He wouldn’t have a choice,” you insisted. “That’s how life works sometimes. I don’t want it to. I don’t want him to—I just want us to do this together.”

“And you will,” she promised, pulling away slightly so she could look at you. “But maybe at different speeds. But who the hell cares? You were together before fame and you’ll be together after. You’ll wipe your stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame together and then walk into the sunshine, hand-in-hand. Who cares if you’ll host your exhibition a month, or a year after he releases his album?”

You cared, sniffling as you refused to meet her eyes. “A lot can happen in a year.”

“And a lot will,” she nodded. “But you two had already gone through so much, you might as well go through a little bit more.”

“What if that’s where the breaking point is? What if we don’t have a year—”

“Sweetheart,” she stopped you, suddenly grave serious. “What if I reach down inside of you, grab that paranoia of yours, and strangle it so it no longer bothers you, hmm? That would save us all a lot of time.”

You couldn’t control the snicker that passed your lips and got Hyojin to smile as well.

“Go back,” she told you then. “And don’t forget where you’re going, okay?”

Your eyebrows furrowed. “What do you mean? Where am I going?”

Hyojin smile meaningfully. “You’re going home.”

Hyojin’s last words helped you more than you’d realized at first, and you woke up the next morning with a decision – tonight was going to be the last event you’d attend with Jiho. Once it was over, you would sit him down and tell him that you had to find another way because you simply couldn’t approve of this one. He’d have to agree to let you host your exhibition right now and not “when you were more popular.” You’d tell him about the pictures you’d taken of Jaebum and how much his agency liked them if he refused to listen to you.

And then, if he’d agree, you’d go home, talk to Jaebum, host your exhibition, and live happily ever after. And if he wouldn’t, you’d still go home, talk to Jaebum, and find a way to live out your happily ever after without getting your exhibition.

You hoped for the former but, as you applied your make-up for the night, you braced yourself for the latter. You knew that the chances of Jiho agreeing to just cut straight to your exhibition were slim – you and him were only seen together twice; surely, that wasn’t going to be enough in his eyes – but you trusted your ability to sound convincing. He’d insisted the gallery wanted you for your potential, so, maybe he’d fight harder to hold on to you and agree to your terms, after all.

In the end, whatever happened tonight, this was going to be the last time you were out with Jiho for publicity.

You nearly blacked out when, after leaving a note to let Jaebum know you were off to a photography event, you walked out of your building and saw Jiho step out of a limousine. A sleek black limousine – as if you two were headed to your wedding or something.

“W-what is—” you began but didn’t get to finish before Jiho’s bright laughter cut you off.

“I thought we’d arrive in style! What do you think?” he asked. You thought he was a lunatic. “Attract some more attention, hmm? Come on, get inside – got your camera? Good! – there’s champagne.”

You felt like you’d just skipped through, at least, three chapters of your life when you climbed into his limousine. Who were you, exactly, to have this expensive ride with undoubtedly equally as expensive glass of champagne thrust into your hand as soon as you sat down?

It was impossible to understand what was happening – although, from the laid-back way Jiho was acting, you’d have thought he took the limo to go to work and do his grocery shopping, so this wasn’t weird to him in the slightest – and, what’s more, it was impossible to figure out what would happen next.

As it turned out, what happened next was silence. Jiho was texting someone on his phone, so the only sound in the car was the rapid click-clacking of his fingers against his screen and the ever-so-often sip of champagne. You, on the other hand, refused to drink and remained completely quiet and overly alert the entire ride. When thrust into a situation you’ve never experienced before, it was probably best to stay sober and aware of your surroundings.

Once the limousine stopped – tossing your heart from your chest to your heels – about fifty minutes later, Jiho finally put his phone away and turned to look at you.

“Here’s the plan,” he declared in a way that made it seem as though you two were about to rob a bank Bonnie-and-Clyde style. “I didn’t tell you to bring your camera just so people would know you’re a photographer. That will come up anyway. I asked—”

“Will it?” you cut him off reflexively.

“What?”

“Will it come up?” you repeated, deliberately this time. You had decided to tell him you didn’t want to do this – even though he had to know that himself already – and you were going to stick with that decision. “Because, judging from the article written about us after the dinner, I’m not actually a photographer at all. I’m just a girl on your arm.”

Jiho, for some reason, hadn’t expected you to have read the article. Once the initial surprise wore off, however, he looked pleased that you’ve seen it and was almost inclined to ask who’d shown it to you. Clearly, you had your own sources and he was all the more curious to know who they were.

“Right, but that’s where it starts,” he insisted. “Slowly, more and more people will stop focusing on the fact that we’re together and, instead, will start to focus on us as individuals. I mean, come on, there are only so many speculations that can be made about the relationship of two people. Sooner or later, people are bound to get bored.”

“If they’re bored, they’ll ignore me and focus on you,” you said, “and I will still be the girl—”

“Quit thinking I’ll be quiet through it all,” he cut you off, showing you, for the first time since you’ve met him, that he also had the ability to get annoyed. “I’m doing this for you—for the gallery. Obviously, I will do everything in my power to make it clear that we are both photographers. Hence your camera here, tonight. I want you to capture this event from your own point of view. I will use one of your pictures in my review of tonight’s exhibition – with proper credit, of course – and that’s how everything will kick off.”

You bit your lip, looking down. If he’d told you of this plan earlier, perhaps you’d have felt less revolted riding this limousine with him. Still, though – was the expensive car so necessary?

“Fine,” you said, choosing to leave the conversation about how you wanted to finish doing these events until after the night was over. You were sort of an expert at postponing potentially complicated conversations. “Let’s just get this over and done with.”

Jiho smiled in response – the smile, that was most likely fake, looked so real that you started to wonder if he’d been faking this nice exterior the whole night tonight – and, opening the door of the limo with one hand, extended his other one to you.

“What do you want me to—”

Not waiting for you to start questioning his motives again, he took your hand against your wishes, and helped you get out of the car. There were three people taking pictures of the guests arriving at the exhibition and all three of them suddenly had their cameras on you and Jiho, eager to capture you two stepping out of the car, hand-in-hand. It was almost blinding and most surreal.

“Good to see you, Jiho!” one of the photographers hollered, his flash going off every two seconds. You were sure you had your eyes closed in every single picture he took. “Is that the missus?”

You cringed – but hoped it wasn’t too noticeable – and tried to pull your hand out of Jiho’s grip now that you were out of the car, but he didn’t let you.

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” Jiho replied sneakily, shooting a wink in the direction of the camera. “I’m here to have a grand night, admiring the artwork of a dear friend with a dear friend.”

“Is she just a friend, then?” another one asked. You felt yourself clutch the camera in your hands tighter in hopes of drawing more attention to it. “A close friend, perhaps?”

“She’s all of that and a lot more,” Jiho replied and you felt a cold wave wash over your entire body at his words. “And she’s one of the most talented young acts I know. Careful, boys, her pictures tonight might just overshadow yours.”

“We’re looking forward to it, Jiho!” the photographer said as Jiho lead you inside. Your feet were nearly frozen solid. “Have a great night!”

“You, too!” Jiho wished with a gentle wave of his hand and the two of you finally escaped the cameras by entering the building.

As soon as the photographers were behind you, you pulled your hand out of Jiho’s a little more forcibly than you’d intended and gave him a horrified look.

“What the hell are you saying to them?!” you demanded, not even trying to keep your voice down. “You told me you’d leave our relationship up for speculation and then you went ahead and—”

“And what?” he snapped, your sudden outrage frustrating him much more than your persistent doubts in the limo did. “What was it that I said to them that wasn’t precisely that? I’m planting the seeds of doubt—”

“You’re planting rumors!” you disagreed vehemently. “Do you really think they’ll care about my photographs now that you’d made it seem as if we’re together? As if we’re in love?”

“Of course, they will—”

“They couldn’t care less about that shit!” you continued, noticing how each swear word out of your lips made Jiho cringe and look around to see if anyone heard. “All that their cameras focused on was you holding my hand. I’m nothing to them—”

Jiho cut you off by taking a threatening step towards you, his face dangerously close to yours as he whisper-yelled through clenched teeth, “how do you expected to be something when you haven’t done anything? Popularity is earned. I’m earning it for you so show more gratitude and stop making a fucking scene.”

He stepped away a second later and, if you hadn’t been there, listening to him curse and put you down, you probably wouldn’t have believed it. Jiho was a fantastic actor, truly – the way he kept his composure around you all of this time was admirable. But there had to be a reason why you were so adamant to get away from him at all times; clearly, it wasn’t just because you’d misunderstood his intentions the first time you met him. It was also because somewhere deep in your subconscious, you figured he was just playing a role of Jiho, the sweet and eager-to-help photographer, while his real personality was buried deep underneath.

Well, you’d caught glimpses of his real face just now and, when he told you to straighten up and proceeded to wrap one hand around your waist to enter the exhibition hall, smiling as if you hadn’t just argued, you knew that the decision to drop everything, cancel the contract, and find another way to get your name out there was the right one.

“Jiho, I—”

“Shh,” he hushed sharply. “I need you to stay quiet right now. I’m looking for the host, I’m going to introduce you and then off you go, taking your pictures. Got it? I’m not in the mood to talk to you right now.”

“Me neither. I was just—”

His grip on your waist tightened. “What did I just tell you?”

His voice sounded like it came straight from hell and yet, instead of feeling intimidated, you felt incredibly relieved. You weren’t wrong, Jiho may have just been the devil incarnate with some very well-trained – albeit pretend – manners.

You stayed quiet, allowing him to search for the host of the night because you figured that if you had to end the night without a contract – you didn’t think it was possible that Jiho would agree to cut short to your exhibition instead of just dropping you right away – then it’d be great if you would get to meet a few more influential people beforehand. They probably weren’t going to help you out, knowing their relationship with Jiho, but it wouldn’t hurt to have them learn your name.

As soon as you shook the hand of the photographer whose pictures hung on the walls of the hall around you – your face hurt from all the fake smiles already, even though you’d only been here for less than twenty minutes – something happened that made you regret leaving your house tonight even more. You should have bolted in the opposite direction as soon as you saw the limousine approach, really.

“Hello,” an awfully familiar voice sounded next to you. You thought you experienced what falling from the twentieth story of a skyscraper must have felt like when you turned around to meet Jackson’s eyes. “I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“Oh. H-hey,” you choked out, painfully aware of Jiho’s hand still on your waist. “I’m here with—”

“Hello,” Jiho turned around as soon as the host of the exhibition walked away. You may have feared Jaebum meeting Jiho but you couldn’t even begin to imagine what was going to happen when one of Jaebum’s best friends met him instead. “I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m—”

“Could you excuse us for a moment?” Jackson asked, his hand coming to rest on your waist instead.

Taking advantage of Jiho’s confused features, Jackson pulled you away from him and – before you could protest – walked you to the closest bathroom he could find, closing the door behind you.

“I’m sorry for cutting it straight to the chase,” he spoke as calmly as he could given the situation, “but, shit, who the hell is that?”

“T-that’s Jiho. He’s—”

“A scumbag that’s about to get his ass kicked, I hope?” Jackson finished for you. “What are you doing here with him?”

“I’m—God, it’s a long story,” you said, the exhaustion you’ve felt since you signed the contract showing in your voice. “I’ve signed a deal with his gallery, so I have to—”

“Does Jaebum know you’re here?”

“Jackson—”

“Because, I swear to God, I have no idea what you’re doing but I—”

“Jackson!” you said louder, suddenly afraid of the fire behind his eyes. He looked frantic. He looked like he was going to knock Jiho out right after he left the bathroom and his hand was already reaching for the door handle. “Please listen, I’m just—I came to the exhibition. I’ve signed a contract with a gallery Jiho represents and I need some exposure—”

“Some exposure?” he frowned, the look on his face depicting every frustration you were feeling inside. You were afraid to look him in the eyes. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“It means I can’t host my exhibition while no one knows who I am,” you answered. “I need to—”

“That’s bullshit!” Jackson snapped. “How are you supposed to get exposure without hosting any exhibitions? Did he convince you this was a good idea?”

“No, I don’t think this is a good idea, I—”

Jackson threw his hands in the air, startling you. “Well, then what the fuck are you doing here?!”

“I’m trying to get my name out there!” you replied in agitation. Jackon’s accusing tone and the questions he was firing at you confirmed that your raised voices in this bathroom were going to be nothing in comparison to the storm this would cause with Jaebum. “Fuck! I’m just—I’m trying to get some publicity. That was part of the contract.”

Jackson scoffed. “That guy has you pressed against his side like you’re his trophy wife. I don’t know what kind of publicity you’re seeking but I can assure you, this isn’t it. Jaebum—fuck, is he on board with this?”

You almost flinched when he mentioned Jaebum again.

“Of course he’s not—actually, uh, he doesn’t know the—”

“He doesn’t know?!”

To say that Jackson was appalled would have been an understatement.

“He doesn’t know the details!” you tried to explain, feeling yourself tear up but desperately trying to remain calm – or, well, as calm as you could with Jackson looking at you like you’d just killed your way through the West Coast. “He knows I have to attend these events for a little while, he just—I didn’t tell him about Jiho. The three of us go way back, he hates the guy.”

“Oh,” Jackson said in an uncharacteristically high-pitched voice. It was scary to hear his deep, somber tone take such a sarcastic chirp turn. “So, that makes all of this better!”

“It doesn’t,” you tried. “And I’ll tell him—”

“Like hell, you will.”

“W-what?”

“If you hadn’t told him yet, clearly, you’re not that eager to tell him at all,” he stated.

“No, I want him to know,” you insisted but you weren’t sure if you meant it. Hearing Jackson voice your real intentions was the ultimate turning point and every single ounce of guilt came pouring out of your eyes in tears. You really didn’t want Jaebum to know. “I-I just don’t want to fight with him about this—”

“Then maybe don’t do this!” Jackson continued, still as loud as before but gentler now that you started to cry, “if you’re doing something that’s going to start a fight with your boyfriend when he finds out, then you’re probably stepping out of line in a major way, don’t you think?” he paused as soon as he realized how riled up he was. He brought his hands through his hair to calm himself down. “God, I’m sorry, I can’t—I seriously have a hard time understanding this. W-why did you think this was a good idea? How the hell did you think faking a relationship with someone was going to go under your own boyfriend’s radar?”

You sniffled, trying to focus on your breathing so you wouldn’t sob out loud, “I’m not faking a relationship—”

“Oh, okay, well, don’t worry about that – that guy out there is doing it for you,” Jackson countered.

“No, I—this,” you felt yourself hiccup, “it w-wasn’t supposed to be like this.”

“Fuck, what was it supposed to be like?” Jackson asked. “Because last time I was on the phone with Jaebum, he was in my studio, writing a fucking song about you. I definitely didn’t think I’d hang up the phone, turn around, and see his girl walk right past me with another guy.”

You barely had enough time to process what he had just said when a knock came on the bathroom door.

“Is everything alright?” Jiho’s voice called out. “I hate to bother you but we should probably get back out here. We’re here for your benefit, after all.”

“In a moment!” you replied through a stuffed nose. Jackson sighed, his hands on his hips and his eyes focused on the floor. The fact that he couldn’t even look at you felt like a whole new stab of pain. “Look, this is the last event I’m doing. I’m ending it tonight. If they won’t let me host an exhibition, I’ll find another solution. I won’t do this anymore.”

You wiped the tears from your cheeks and tried to steady your breathing.

“How many events like this have you done already?” Jackson asked another moment later. He may have been angry with you but he hated to have been the reason why you started to cry.

“Just a few, it hasn’t been that long—”

“And how long were you planning on doing this for?”

“N-not long,” you said, your breath hitching again. You exhaled slowly before finishing, “ideally, I want to end this tonight.”

“But you’ll still work with him – with a guy who’s obviously very interested in making the public think he’s dating you – and Jaebum will still not know about it, is that what you’re planning?” Jackson continued, watching your eyes fill with tears again but not being able to stop himself. He’d have put his life on the line for his best friend and it was starting to feel like that was exactly what he was doing right now because he knew he was going to wish he was dead as soon as this blew over. The sight of you crying because of the things he’d said was too awful to bear. “Jaebum will come to your exhibition, not having the slightest clue that there’s a guy who’s—”

“I’ll tell him!” you shouted desperately, pain spilling from your eyes without the slightest intention of stopping. “God, I will! I’ll tell him everything.”

“Will you? Will you, really? Because he’s my best friend. I can’t just stand here after I learned about the shit that he doesn’t know but should know. Fuck. I think you’re great, I really do. And, God knows, I’m so sorry I’ve made you cry tonight,” he added and then, even despite all that he’d just said, stepped closer to provide you with some comfort by carefully wrapping his arms around you, “I think the two of you are perfect for each other but, fuck…” he sighed after hearing you sob against his shoulder, “you know his heart better than I do, but even I can tell that you’re walking dangerously close to breaking it.”

“I wouldn’t,” you whispered, pulling away from him to look him in the eyes. “I couldn’t. I would never, I-I—”

“I know you probably don’t mean it,” he said softly, releasing you. “But he’s going to hate the fact that you’re keeping this a secret.”

“I know he is,” you nodded, stepping away from him and sniffling before slowly bringing your index fingers under your eyelids. Your make-up was most definitely destroyed but that was the least of your worries right now. “That’s w-why, the longer I stay quiet, the harder it gets to find a way to tell him.”

He sighed again. “You know someone has to.”

“J-Jackson, I—”

“Just go, okay?” he asked, turning away from you and resting his hands on the sink, his head hanging low. It was you who felt beyond ashamed and yet he looked like he was the one making the biggest mistake of his life. “That guy’s waiting for you out there.”

“Please, I’ll tell Jaebum about this, I just—”

“Go,” Jackson repeated. “Please.”

You reached the door but turned around as soon as the last tears slid down your cheeks. You waited for him to turn around to look at you but he wouldn’t.

“I don’t want to hurt him,” you said slowly, the ball in your throat from the tears and the pain and the guilt suffocating you. “I love him.”

Jackson whipped his head to face you. “Does he know?”

Looking down again, you didn’t even dare to shake your head – and you didn’t have to, Jackson knew the answer already. This was another thing you’d never gathered the courage to tell to Jaebum.

Jackson looked away again and, after another torturous moment, you dared to exit the bathroom, closing the door behind you and feeling yourself tear up yet again as soon as you saw Jiho’s polished shoes.

“What was that about?” he asked you right away.

“Jiho,” you said sternly, your vision clouded with tears. You thought you saw him take a small step back in shock once he saw your puffy red eyes. “I won’t do this anymore. I need an answer right now – can I host my exhibition at your gallery or not? Because if not, I’m ending the contract right this moment.”

“Well, of course, you can,” Jiho replied, surprised. His fake face was back on and you wished nothing more than to claw it off. “You just need a little bit more exposure and—”

“No,” you shook your head. “I don’t like this. I didn’t like the article written about us, I didn’t like what you told those photographers out there, and I don’t like the fact that we’re, essentially, pretending to be in a relationship. I’m not—I don’t want to do that. Either, I host the exhibition now or I’m leaving.”

“Well—that’s—where is all this coming from? I thought we’d reached an agreement. You’re so close to—”

“The only thing I’m close to is ruining the only thing that makes sense in my life,” you were the one who kept cutting him off this time. It was nice to have the upper hand for a change even if you had a feeling it would backfire. “So, tell me right now: will I have the exhibition at your gallery or not?”

“I-I can’t give you an answer immediately,” he replied. “I need to check in with the gallery and we need some time to consider this.”

“Okay. Consider it, then,” you said, exhaling shakily as you turned around towards the front door of the hall. “And give me an answer as soon as possible.”

“Wh—right, but where are you going?”

You didn’t stop as you answered curtly, “I’m going home.”

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